Baikonur Cosmodrome
1955 to present
Site Details
- Country: Kazakhstan
- Operator: Roscosmos under lease from Kazakhstan
- Type: Government
Overview
The cosmodrome where space flight began: Sputnik in 1957 and Gagarin in 1961. Sprawling over the Kazakh steppe, Baikonur is leased by Russia through 2050 and launches crewed Soyuz flights, Progress freighters, and workhorse boosters. The mining town renamed Baikonur lies about 300 kilometers from the pads.
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