Map showing the location of Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan

The Baikonur Cosmodrome (Kazakh: Байқоңыр ғарыш айлағы, Bayqoñır ğarış aylağı; Russian: Космодром Байконур, Kosmodrom Baikonur), also called Tjuratam, is the world's oldest and largest operational space launch facility. Kazakh (also Qazaq and variants natively kk Qazaq tili, kk Қазақ тілі; pronounced tˈlə is a Turkic language closely related to Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages A spaceport or cosmodrome is a site for launching Spacecraft, by analogy with Seaport for Ships or Airport for Aircraft It is located in the desert steppes of Kazakhstan, about 200 kilometers (124 mi) east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near of Tjuratam railway station. In physical Geography, a steppe ( German, from степь - "a flat and arid land" степ - /stɛp/ тал - tal дала - /dɑlɑ/ pronounced Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan ( Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, qɑzɑqˈstɑn Казахстан, Kazakhstán,) officially the The Aral Sea ( Kazakh: Арал Теңізі Aral Tengizi, Orol dengizi Russian: Аральскοе мοре Tajik / Persian: Daryocha-i Syr Darya (Сырдария Сирдарё Sirdaryoسيردريا also transliterated Syrdarya or Sirdaryo) is a River in Central Asia Tyuratam (or Turatam) is a station on the main Moscow to Tashkent railway located in Kazakhstan. The facility derives its name from a wider area known as Baikonur and is also traditionally linked with town of Dzhezkazgan. Baikonur ( Kazakh: Байқоңыр Russian: Байконур formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan Zhezkazgan, also known as Zhezqazghan (Жезқазған - Zhezqazghan, Джезказган - Dzhezkazgan) is a city in Karagandy Province It is leased by the Kazakh government to Russia (currently until 2050) and is managed by the Russian Federal Space Agency. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The Russian Federal Space Agency ( Russian: Федеральное космическое агентство России Federal'noe kosmicheskoe agentstvo Rossii The shape of the area leased is an ellipse, measuring 90 kilometres east to west, by 85 kilometres north to south, with the cosmodrome at the centre. It was originally built by the Soviet Union from the late 1950s as the base of operations for its ambitious space program, but fell in decline^[1] in the years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 This is a list of the manned space missions conducted by the Soviet space programme and its successor agency the Russian Federal Space Agency. The Buran spacecraft ( Буран "Snowstorm" or "Blizzard") GRAU index 11F35 K1, was the only fully completed and operational One of the launch pads, known as Gagarin's Start, is located at 45°55′13″N, 63°20′32″E and is the launch pad from which Vostok 1 was launched. Vostok 1 (Восток-1 meaning Orient -1 or East-1 was the first Human spaceflight.

Name

It is sometimes assumed that the name "Baikonur" was chosen to intentionally mislead the West as to the actual location of the site by suggesting that it was near Baikonur, a mining town about 320 kilometers (199 mi) northeast of the launch centre in the desert area near Dzhezkazgan. Baikonur ( Kazakh: Байқоңыр Russian: Байконур formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan Zhezkazgan, also known as Zhezqazghan (Жезқазған - Zhezqazghan, Джезказган - Dzhezkazgan) is a city in Karagandy Province But "Baikonur" also refers to the entire region. Tyuratam (or Turatam) is a station on the main Moscow to Tashkent railway located in Kazakhstan. ^[2] The town of Baikonur got its current name only in December 1995, 40 years after operations on site began. Baikonur ( Kazakh: Байқоңыр Russian: Байконур formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan

History

Soviet era

Baikonur was founded on June 2, 1955. Events 455 - The Vandals enter Rome, and plunder the city for two weeks Year 1955 ( MCMLV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1955 Gregorian calendar) It was originally built as a long-range-missile center and later expanded to include launch facilities for space flight. Sergei Korolev, the Chief Designer of the Soviet R-7 Semyorka ICBM, selected the site, as the radio control system of the rocket required a ground station several hundred kilometers down range of the launch pads. Sergey Pavlovich Korolyov (often Transliterated as Sergei Korolev) (Серге́й Па́влович Королёв Сергій Павлович Корольов The R-7 Semyorka (Р-7 "Семёрка" was the world's first true Intercontinental ballistic missile and was deployed by the Soviet Union during the The expense of constructing the launch facilities and the several hundred kilometers of new road and train lines made the Cosmodrome one of the most costly infrastructure projects the Soviets undertook. A supporting town was built around the facility to provide housing, schools and support infrastructure for workers. It was raised to city status in 1966 and named Leninsk. Baikonur ( Kazakh: Байқоңыр Russian: Байконур formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan

The Soviet government established the Nauchno-Issledovatel’skii Ispytatel’nyi Poligon N. 5 (NIIIP-5), or Scientific-Research Test Range N. 5, by its decree of 12 February 1955. Events 1429 - English Forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the The U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance plane found and photographed the Tyuratam missile test range (cosmodrome Baikonur) for the first time on 5 August 1957. Events 642 - Battle of Maserfield - Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Bernicia. Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) See a composite satellite image of the early Tyuratam launch complex, the cosmodrome (30 May 1962).

Many historic flights lifted off from Baikonur: the first operational ICBM; the first man-made satellite, Sputnik 1, on October 4, 1957; the first manned orbital flight by Yuri Gagarin on April 12, 1961; and the flight of the first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova, in 1963. Sputnik 1 ( "Спутник-1", "Satellite-1" ПС-1 ( PS-1, i Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) Events 467 - Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Valentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova (Валенти́на Влади́мировна Терешко́ва born 6 March 1937) is a retired Soviet 14 cosmonauts of 13 other nations, such as Czechoslovakia, East Germany and France, started their historical journeys from here as well under Interkosmos program. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The German Democratic Republic ( GDR; Deutsche Demokratische Republik DDR; commonly known in English as East Germany) was a Socialist state This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The Intercosmos ("ИнтерКосмос" Interkosmos) was a space exploration program run by the Soviet Union to allow members from military forces of allied In 1960, a prototype ICBM exploded before launch, killing over 100 people. The Nedelin catastrophe or Nedelin disaster was a launch pad accident that occurred on 24 October 1960, at Baikonur Cosmodrome during the development

Russian era

Following the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 the Russian space program continued to operate from Baikonur under the auspices of the Commonwealth of Independent States. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 In 1995, the city surrounding the spaceport was renamed Baikonur. Baikonur ( Kazakh: Байқоңыр Russian: Байконур formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan On June 8, 2005 the Russian Federation Council ratified an agreement between Russia and Kazakhstan extending Russia’s rent term of the spaceport until 2050. Events 68 - The Roman Senate accepts emperor Galba. 536 - St Silverius becomes Pope (probable Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Federation Council of Russia (Сове́т Федера́ции Sovet Federatsii) is the Upper house of the Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan ( Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, qɑzɑqˈstɑn Казахстан, Kazakhstán,) officially the The rent price - which is fixed at 115 million US dollars per year - is the source of a long-running dispute between the two countries. The United States dollar ( sign: $; code: USD) is the unit of Currency of the United States; it has also been That dispute has prompted Russia to begin upgrading its own Plesetsk Cosmodrome in the Arkhangelsk Oblast of Northern Russia as a fallback option. Plesetsk Cosmodrome ( Russian: Космодром «Плесецк») is a Russian Arkhangelsk Oblast (Арха́нгельская о́бласть Arkhangelskaya oblast) is a federal subject of Russia (an Oblast)

Features

Baikonur is fully equipped with facilities for launching both manned and unmanned space vehicles. A spacecraft is a Vehicle or machine designed for Spaceflight. It supports several generations of Russian spacecraft: Soyuz, Proton, Tsyklon, Dnepr, Zenit and Buran. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The Soyuz launch vehicle (Western designation A-2 is an Expendable launch system manufactured by TsSKB-Progress in Samara Russia. The Proton rocket The Tsyklon (Циклон "Cyclone" also known as Tsiklon) GRAU index 11K67 was a Soviet / Ukrainian -designed Expendable launch The Dnepr rocket (Дніпро Dnipro; Днепр Dnepr) is a space Launch vehicle named after the Dnieper River. The Buran spacecraft ( Буран "Snowstorm" or "Blizzard") GRAU index 11F35 K1, was the only fully completed and operational During the temporary lapse of the United States' Space Shuttle program after the Columbia Disaster in 2003 it played an essential role in operating and resupplying of the International Space Station with Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the NASA 's Space Shuttle, officially called the Space Transportation System ( STS) is the Spacecraft currently used by the United States The Space Shuttle Columbia disaster occurred on February 1, 2003, when the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disintegrated over Texas Design A Soyuz spacecraft consists of three parts (from front to back A Spheroid Orbital module, which provides accommodation for the crew during

Downrange from the launchpad, spent launch equipment is dropped directly on the ground where it is salvaged by the workers and by the local population. ^[3]

List of launchpads

• Pad 1/5 (Gagarin's Start): Soyuz-Soyuz/Progress/Ikar - 45. 920 N, 63. 342 E
• Pad 31/6: Soyuz-Kosmos/Fregat - 45. Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome is a launch site used by derivatives of the R-7 Semyorka missile Fregat is a is a type of rocket stage developed by NPO Lavochkin in the 1990s 996 N, 63. 564 E
• Pad 41/15: Kosmos 3(1964-1968) - 45. 976 N, 63. 669 E
• Pad 45/1: Zenit 2, Zenit 2M, Zenit 3M - 45. 943 N, 63. 653 E
• Pad 45/2: Zenit 2(Destroyed in 1990 explosion) - 45. 940 N, 63. 655 E
• Pad 81/23 (81L): Proton-K - 46. 074 N, 62. 978 E
• Pad 81/24 (81P): Proton-M - 46. The Proton rocket 071 N, 62. 985 E
• Pad 90/19 (90L): Tsyklon-2(Inactive >1989) - 46. The Tsyklon-2, also known as Tsiklon-2 and Tsyklon-M, GRAU index 11K69 was a Soviet, and subsequently Ukrainian Orbital 081 N, 62. 932 E
• Pad 90/20 (90R): Tsyklon-2 - 46. 080 N, 62. 935 E
• Pad 109/95: Dnepr - 45. The Dnepr rocket (Дніпро Dnipro; Днепр Dnepr) is a space Launch vehicle named after the Dnieper River. 951 N, 63. 497 E
• Pad 110/37 (110L): N-1 (inactive after 1972)- 45. 965 N, 63. 305 E
• Pad 110/38 (110R): N-1 (inactive after 1969)- 45. 962 N, 63. 310 E
• Pad 175/59: Rokot(1991-1994) - 46. 052 N, 62. 986 E
• Pad 200/39 (200L): Proton-M/Proton-K - 46. 040 N, 63. 032 E
• Pad 200/40 (200R): Proton-K (inactive after 1991) - 46. 036 N, 63. 038 E
• Pad 250: Energia (inactive after 1988) - 46. The Energia (or Energiya, Энергия in Russian, meaning Energy) Rocket was a Soviet rocket that was designed 008 N, 63. 305 E

Future projects

On December 22, 2004, Kazakhstan and Russia signed a contract establishing the "Russia-Kazakhstan Baiterek JV" joint venture, in which each country holds a 50-percent stake. Events 1790 - The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Suvorov and his Russian armies "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " The goal of the project is the construction of the Baiterek (poplar tree) space launch complex, to facilitate operations of the Russian Angara rocket launcher. Populus is a genus of between 25–35 species of Flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. The Angara rocket is a planned space-launch vehicle, designed to place heavy payloads into orbit The site is scheduled to be completed in 2009. ^[4] This will allow launches with a payload of 26 tons to low earth orbit, compared to 20 tons using the Proton system. A Low Earth Orbit (LEO is generally defined as an Orbit within the locus extending from the Earth’s surface up to an altitude of 2000 km An additional benefit will be that the Angara uses kerosene and oxygen as fuel, which is less hazardous to the environment than the toxic fuels used by older boosters. The total expenditure on the Kazakh side will be $223 million over 19 years. ^[5]

Fictional Portrayals

The launch site is mentioned in the American Star Trek:The Next Generation TV series as being the launch site for an Oberth class starship, a science exploration vessel, in the 24th Century. Star Trek The Next Generation ( STTNG or TNG) is an Emmy and Peabody Award-winning science fiction television program created by Gene Roddenberry The Oberth class is a fictional Starfleet Starship class in the Star Trek Science fiction franchise This is likely a tribute to the heritage of the Cosmodrome by the writers of the show.

Baikonur Cosmodrome is also featured in the computer game Command & Conquer: Generals, when it is captured by GLA terrorists and used as a launch site for anthrax-armed ICBMs; however the site is destroyed by a USA counterattack in the expansion pack. Command & Conquer Generals is a Real-time strategy game in the Command & Conquer series. Command and Conquer Generals – Zero Hour is the Expansion pack for the computer game Command & Conquer Generals.

Much of the first half of the anime Blue Gender covers the journey of the main characters, Yuji Kaido and Marlene Angel, from Japan to Baikonur in an attempt to flee the infested planet to an orbital space colony. (anime in Japanese, is a 26-episode Anime created by Ryousuke Takahashi (of Armored Trooper Votoms and Gasaraki fame broadcast in Japan from 1999-2000 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics.

In the video game Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2: Summit Strike, the Cosmodrome is besieged by Kazakh-Pakistani rebel forces who attempt to take command of the facility for their own usage. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2 Summit Strike is the expansion to Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2. Fortunately, United Nations soldiers and the titular "Ghosts" repel the attack. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security

References

External links

• Baikonur Cosmodrome historical note (in Russian) and historical pictures (2002) on buran.ru - NPO Molniya, maker of Russian space shuttle Buran. NPO Molniya (Научно-производственное объединение «Молния» is a Russian scientific and production enterprise founded on February 26, The Soviet reusable Spacecraft program Buran ("Бура́н" meaning " Snowstorm " or " Blizzard " in Russian
• RussianSpaceWeb.com on Baikonur
• RussianSpaceWeb.com on Angara and Baikonur expansion

• Baikonur Cosmodrome is at coordinates 45°57′54″N 63°18′18″E / 45.965, 63.305 (Baikonur Cosmodrome)Coordinates: 45°57′54″N 63°18′18″E / 45.965, 63.305 (Baikonur Cosmodrome)