Russian cosmodromes are still ahead of the rest. The most famous cosmodrome in Russia: description, history and photos

Most famous spaceport Russia is Baikonur. It carried out the largest number of launch vehicles. IN this moment Russia is building a new Vostochny cosmodrome.

How many spaceports are there in the world?

Baikonur is the oldest cosmodrome in Russia and the entire planet. Moreover, it is also the largest. It was founded in 1955 on the territory of Kazakhstan. After the breakup Soviet Union The cosmodrome is leased by the Russian government from the Kazakh side. At the moment, the lease agreement is concluded until 2050.

In total, there are 14 cosmodromes in the world from which launch vehicles were launched. The territory itself is a complex of structures designed for launching special vehicles into space. As a rule, they occupy huge areas and are located at a great distance from populated areas. After all, stages that separate during the flight can cause damage to residential buildings or neighboring launch sites.

Scientists have long noticed that the most advantageous location for cosmodromes is right on the equator. Thus, the launch vehicle saves about 10% of fuel compared to a rocket that is launched from mid-latitudes.

In addition to Russia, spaceports from which launch vehicles have already been launched exist in the USA, French Guiana, China, India, Japan, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Iran. There is also an international launch platform "Odyssey", located in the Pacific Ocean.

No. 1 - Baikonur

Construction of the largest cosmodrome in Russia began in 1955. Initially, a special commission was created to determine the location where this structure would appear. This territory had to meet several conditions. They chose a vast, but at the same time sparsely populated area; there had to be a railway nearby. Also mandatory conditions are the availability of drinking and process water in large volumes.

Several options were considered. As a result, the choice was made in the Kyzylorda region on the territory of the Kazakh SSR. The construction of the cosmodrome began in the desert, not far from the Aral Sea, the Syr Darya rivers and the Moscow-Tashkent railway line. Another advantage was the sunny weather, which persists in these places for about 300 days a year. In addition, the desert is relatively close to the equator.

The construction of the cosmodrome was led by Georgy Shubnikov, Major General of the Engineering and Technical Service. It is interesting that in order to disorient a possible enemy, in addition to the main cosmodrome, several camouflage structures were built. This is a false cosmodrome in the Karaganda region. It is located near the village of Baikonur. After the successful flight of the first man, Yuri Gagarin, into space, it was the name Baikonur that stuck in people’s minds. As a result, this is now the name given to a real spaceport located in a different location.

History of the object

The first rocket was launched from Baikonur in 1957. True, unsuccessful. On August 21, for the first time, a rocket successfully delivered a conditional cargo from Baikonur to Kamchatka.

At 10:28 p.m. on October 4, 1957, the space age began. The Soviet Union launched the world's first artificial satellite from Baikonur. And at 9.07, the first man went on a space flight from here.

A large-scale infrastructure has been organized at Baikonur. The cosmodrome has 9 launch complexes and 15 launchers. There are two airfields, more than a thousand kilometers of roads, thousands of kilometers of communication and power lines.

No. 2 - Vostochny cosmodrome

In 2007, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to begin construction of a new facility. Construction of the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia began in 2012.

It must provide the country with independent access to space. In addition, it must guarantee the fulfillment of all obligations under commercial and international space programs, and will also significantly reduce the cost of maintaining Baikonur. Ultimately, the socio-economic situation in the Amur region, where construction is underway, will improve.

The territory where the Vostochny cosmodrome is being built has a number of advantages. Russia will have the opportunity to send rockets into space, bypassing densely populated areas of the country and the territories of foreign countries. There are highways, railways, and airfields nearby. With the advent of the new cosmodrome, political risks associated with location of Baikonur in Kazakhstan.

Corruption scandals

The construction of a new spaceport is regularly accompanied by scandals. More than 80 billion rubles were allocated for the first stage alone; in total they plan to spend about 300 billion on construction.

At the same time, corruption scandals constantly occur. They began back in 2012, when workers at Vostochny began to go on strike because they were not being paid their wages. To solve this problem, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin was sent there. In 2014, he became the main construction coordinator. Since then, he has visited the site of the future cosmodrome more than fifty times.

Despite this, by the spring of 2015, the wage arrears amounted to about 150 million rubles. The construction workers went on an indefinite hunger strike; this became one of the main topics of direct communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

At the moment, criminal cases have been opened regarding the theft of 7.5 billion rubles.

The fate of Baikonur

After it became known that there would be a cosmodrome on Russian territory, many were worried about the fate of Baikonur. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has officially admitted that the state budget will not be able to support the cosmodrome. For this reason, Astana will not insist on its transfer by Russia.

At the same time, it is obvious that at least for the coming years, the Kazakhstan cosmodrome will remain the main platform for launching heavy rockets. Even after the launch of Vostochny. Although it is planned that over time this will be the main cosmodrome in Russia.

For example, the Angara super-heavy rocket is expected to be launched at the new cosmodrome no earlier than 2026. Another minus new site for launching space rockets is that it is located approximately 6 degrees north of Baikonur. But the closer the launch site is to the equator, the lower the costs and the higher the efficiency.

Therefore, for sure, Russia will not leave Baikonur in the coming years. The only thing that will decline is politicization in cooperation between Moscow and Astana, which is often based on the fact that the main Russian cosmodrome is located on foreign territory.

No. 3 - Plesetsk cosmodrome

Another famous Russian cosmodrome is located in Plesetsk. This cosmodrome is engaged in supporting Russian space programs that are related to defense functions, as well as scientific and commercial objectives.

It is located in the Arkhangelsk region, almost 200 kilometers from the regional center. The Plesetsk Northern Railway runs nearby.

The administrative and residential center of the cosmodrome is located in the city of Mirny. Its population is approximately 30,000 people.

The first launch of a launch vehicle from Plesetsk took place in 1966. After that, it served as a test site for intercontinental-range strategic missile systems.

After 1968, international programs were implemented. Other Russian cosmodromes are also carrying out similar work. Plesetsk, for example, hosted a French spacecraft.

Tragedies in Plesetsk

Many Russian cosmodromes, a list of which you will find in this article, have been involved in a sad chronicle of incidents with human casualties. Plesetsk was no exception.

In 1973, 8 people died in the explosion of the Cosmos rocket. This happened while it was being refueled. Another 10 people were hospitalized. One of them died from his burns without regaining consciousness.

In 1980, the largest tragedy occurred, which claimed the lives of 48 people. The explosion occurred again while refueling. This time, the Vostok rocket and its satellite were at the epicenter of the incident.

In 1987, a fire broke out in a nearby military unit. 5 people died.

In 2002, a Soyuz rocket exploded a few seconds after launch. There was one crew member on board.

The last tragedy occurred in 2013. Two were killed and three were hospitalized during a routine cleaning of a rocket fuel container.

Despite this, Plesetsk is the northernmost cosmodrome in Russia, where rocket launches continue.

No. 4 - Kapustin Yar cosmodrome

When listing Russian cosmodromes, the list of which is included in this article, one cannot fail to mention Kapustin Yar. It is located in the north-west of the Astrakhan region. It was originally built as a ballistic missile test site in 1946.

Kapustin Yar is often called the “Russian Roswell”. It is believed that it was here that Soviet scientists explored alien ships. In support of this legend, there are many television programs in which, for example, the layout of the underground complex under the landfill is described in detail.

No. 5 - Svobodny Cosmodrome

Those who are interested in where the cosmodromes are in Russia know about the existence of a launch pad that is not as popular as the previous ones, Svobodny. It is located in the Amur region, near the city of Tsiolkovsky, former Uglegorsk.

A total of five rocket launches were made from here. The last one was in 2006. The cosmodrome has not been operational for 10 years.

In the 2000s, it was planned that the Strela rocket complex would be launched from this cosmodrome. However, it did not pass the state environmental examination. Primarily due to the highly toxic rocket fuel heptyl. By the way, many Kazakh public and environmental organizations are also against it.

Ultimately, it was decided to liquidate it as part of a large-scale reduction of the armed forces due to low profitability and liquidity. There were very few launches from the Svobodny cosmodrome, and as a result, funding was minimal.

No. 6 - floating cosmodrome "Sea Launch"

Russia also has its own floating spaceport- this is the Sea Launch platform. It is located in the Pacific Ocean. The closest piece of land to it is Christmas Island.

Since 1995, it has been managed by an international consortium. It includes Russia and the USA. The first demonstration satellite was launched in 1999. At the same time, the first commercial launch of a launch vehicle took place.

At the moment, 36 rockets have been sent from the Sea Launch cosmodrome. Moreover, three of them were failures, one launch was considered partially successful.

April 12th, 2015

On June 2, 1955, the project for the construction of Scientific Research Test Site No. 5 (NIIP-5) was approved by the General Staff of the USSR Ministry of Defense. This day is considered the birthday of the Baikonur complex, which includes the city and the cosmodrome.

How did this name come about? Was the cosmodrome named after the nearest city? Or was the newly built city named after the cosmodrome?

It turns out that at the very beginning of the history of the city and the cosmodrome, neither one nor the other was called Baikonur...

From the memoirs of V.A. Skroban: “The place where I served, the closed city of Leninsk, and the cosmodrome in its vicinity in the Kazakh Tyura-Tam desert were called Baikonur unofficially, for reasons of secrecy. We knew that in fact Baikonur is a remote village to the north, in which there is no cosmodrome. It was necessary for the enemies of the Motherland to think that rocket launches were being carried out there in order to divert attention from the present cosmodrome.”

Imagine! I couldn’t wrap my head around how this legendary name turned out to be a “dummy”!” If you start looking for information on this topic, you will find absolutely NOTHING! And that's why:

“On February 12, 1955, the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR, by a joint resolution, approved the creation of a Scientific Research Test Site. This test site was intended for testing rocket technology capable of both delivering nuclear warheads over vast distances (in particular to the United States) and for exploring outer space, something that humanity has dreamed of since ancient times. The location of the cosmodrome was not chosen by chance. Distance from large highways and railway tracks, distance from the border. From a climate point of view, this area is favorable for rocket launches - more than 300 sunny days a year, little precipitation, low humidity, short winter. The location for the cosmodrome was chosen from three options - North Caucasus, Far Eastern and Kazakhstan. Placing the cosmodrome further south was undesirable due to the location of the routes and the main fall fields of spent stages in China or densely populated areas of Central Asia. The territory of the cosmodrome and its accompanying services turned out to be in a bend of the Syrdarya, in the middle between two regional centers of the Kzyl-Orda region - Kazalinsky and Dzhusaly, near the Tyura-Tam junction. Naturally, all U-2s flying over Kazakhstan, including Powers' plane, carefully photographed the gigantic construction of a real facility.

To ensure the secrecy of the facility, construction of an imaginary cosmodrome began. On the northern spurs of the Alatau ridge in Kazakhstan there is the village of Boykonyr or, in Russian, Baikonur. In the early 50s, with great difficulty, timber was brought there and a model of the cosmodrome’s launching devices was built from it. As it was during the war, when, to distract enemy bomber aircraft, false airfields with plywood dummies of aircraft were built. There were no roads, no water or electricity supplies there. That is, there was nothing to hide. American reconnaissance aircraft did not pay attention to Baikonur. However, the “cosmodrome” at Baikonur was guarded until the early 70s. All reports in the Soviet press about satellite launches indicated Baikonur as the launch site. Gradually, this name became associated with a real cosmodrome. Although, “so that no one would guess,” this real cosmodrome and the area where the test site was formed in the first half of 1955 had the code name “Taiga.”

Construction work at the training ground began in the second half of the winter of 1955 by military builders under the leadership of G. M. Shubnikov. At first, military builders lived in tents, in the spring the first dugouts appeared on the banks of the Syr Darya, and on May 5 the first permanent (wooden) building of a residential town was laid.

The official date of birth of the city and the test site is considered to be June 2, 1955, when the directive of the General Staff of the USSR Ministry of Defense approved the organizational structure of the 5th Research Test Site and created military unit 11284 - the site headquarters. The training ground and the village received the unofficial name “Zarya”. In 1955, by a joint decision of the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Defense of the USSR, a conditional postal address was established for the military units of the training ground - “Moscow-400, military unit No...”.

During the second half of 1955, construction of wooden administrative and residential buildings (mainly barracks type) continued on Naberezhnaya and Pionerskaya streets; subsequently, the name “Wooden Town” was assigned to this area (the southern part of the city). The total number of civilian and military personnel working at the test site by the end of 1955 exceeded 2,500 people.

In the summer of 1956, construction began on a brick barracks town in the quarter called the “Tenth Site” (now Gagarin Street). Later, this term was often used colloquially to refer to the entire village of “Zarya” (later - the village of Leninsky and the city of Leninsk). At the end of 1956, a new postal address was established for the military personnel of the training ground - “Kzyl-Orda-50” (later it was changed to “Tashkent-90”, which was valid until the end of the 1960s). By the beginning of 1957, the number of personnel at the test site exceeded 4,000 people.

The original project envisaged that the village would be located on both banks of the river, but a powerful spring flood forced the abandonment of this plan after a few years, especially since the construction of a bridge across the river would have required significant financial and time costs. Construction of the village began on the right bank of the river; to protect against flood waters, a special two-meter dam was built in the southern part of the village.

On January 29, 1958, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the Kazakh SSR, the village on site 10, which had no name, but was unofficially called “Zarya,” was given the name Leninsky. According to the project, the village was designed for permanent residence of about 5 thousand people. However, thanks to the intensive expansion of experimental testing work carried out at the test site, already at the end of 1959, 8,000 people lived in the Leninsky village, and by the end of 1960 - more than 10,000 people.

In the late 1950s - early 1960s, the village was massively built with three-story brick houses (“Stalinist” type with high ceilings) within the boundaries of the streets Ostasheva - Kommunalnaya - Nosova - Lenina, Nosova - Kommunalnaya - Shubnikova - Rechnaya; Four-story buildings were built - the training ground headquarters and a department store - on Lenin Square.

The residential town received the completely official name “Leninsk” and much later, in the late 90s, it was given its current name. In this connection, a second Baikonur appeared on the map of Kazakhstan. And the 5th NIIP received the open name “Baikonur Cosmodrome” (for publications in the press and other purposes) after the first manned space flight - Yu. A. Gagarin, which took place on April 12, 1961, on this day the cosmodrome was awarded the Combat Medal banner.

Baikonur from space.

Here, the honored builder of Russia, foreman of the legendary Gagarin Launch, retired colonel Sergei Alekseenko, shares his memories.

Sergei Andreevich, it is clear that the secrecy surrounding the construction of the cosmodrome was terrible. But did you, military builders, know what you were building?

No. They only knew that the Ministry of Defense was creating a missile base to protect its borders and retaliate nuclear strike in the USA in case of war. In the cover legends of the General Staff, it was called “Stadium”. The first builders arrived at the Tyura-Tam station in January 1955. But it was only in September that work began on digging a pit for the first launch. At first there was not enough equipment: some five scrapers, two bulldozers, the same number of excavators, five dump trucks. All. And this is to remove more than one million cubic meters of rock from a pit 50 meters deep in a matter of months! It’s like scooping up the Sea of ​​Azov with a spoon.

And then, from a depth of one and a half to two meters, it was not sand that came out, but scrap clay, which not a single bucket could take. We tried loosening it with jackhammers - it was no use. But various representatives from the authorities, looking at the drawings, were surprised at the “idleness and laziness” of the then foreman. And they drove him so far that, disappointed in his ability to “dig some kind of hole,” he went to the hospital. I then worked at other facilities. I remember thinking: God forbid I end up in a pit. And how I jinxed it: in January 1956, I was appointed as a foreman for the first space launch. So I started Baikonur from scratch and went through the entire construction process. Before signing the act of commissioning of the Gagarin Complex, and then others into operation.

- Have you met with the Chief Designer often?

Certainly. We communicated very closely. So much so that some even dubbed me almost the “court” foreman of Sergei Pavlovich Korolev: according to his commands, I carried out work in the existing installation and testing complex, at the start, etc.

- Have you ever experienced the strong character of the Queen yourself?

He grabbed me by the breasts at the very first meeting. By the way, because of conspiracy, his last name was not mentioned, they simply said: “The Chief Designer will meet with you.” And it was necessary to meet urgently. We carried out a series of small explosions and suddenly reached the water horizon. As it turned out, the design institute’s drawings were prepared without hydrogeological data. I suggested stopping and starting the construction of the foundation slab at the reached depth. But the customer’s “okay” was needed.

However, Sergei Pavlovich literally began shaking his fist in front of my nose: “No, you will dig a pit for me strictly according to the project, or you will pan for gold very far from here!” I said in my heart: “You were given this depth. A meter more, a meter less - what's the difference? Korolev swore and calmly said: “I cannot agree with this. The rocket jet must have a free path length of at least half the height of the launching rocket. Otherwise, the rocket will not leave the launch site or, having left, will fall nearby. Therefore, I ask: do everything according to the project!” That's when I first realized that we were building after all. Then, of course, there were frictions with Korolev, but they can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Mutual understanding was complete.

- And how did you manage to fulfill Sergei Pavlovich’s request without flooding the pit?

They calculated everything and made two powerful explosions to squeeze out the water and select the rock “dry” to the desired level. What was the drama? We were forbidden to blow things up “from above.” But we saw no other way out. Acted at your own peril and risk. I was present at the conversation between the head of construction of the cosmodrome, Georgy Shubnikov, and the chief engineer of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, Mikhail Grigorenko: they say, if anything happens, we will not put Alekseenko in prison, but we will remove one star from him and demote him in rank.

The first pits were drilled at night, and during the day they were camouflaged with a mound of earth. So that the inspectors do not suspect anything. The first explosion was scheduled for 5 am. And five minutes before him, the demolition foreman came up to me: “Maybe we won’t tear it up, shall we? Well, to hell with this hole - let it stand undigged.” I shook my finger at him and pointed at my watch. And then 20 tons of explosives exploded. The foreman was the first to approach the edge of the pit. When he shouts: “Well done, foreman! No water. We have wiped the noses of academic controllers!”

- You built not only the Baikonur cosmodrome, but also then Plesetsk. Where was it more difficult?

It seems to me that the conditions for the construction of Baikonur were ideal compared to the conditions of Plesetsk. The Kazakhstani climate is excellent for living and construction work. And in Plesetsk? Taiga, off-road and clouds of mosquitoes.

- Which of your meetings with Sergei Pavlovich do you remember most?

A year before his death. I was then working in the Ministry of Defense and that day I came to a reception with papers to Mikhail Georgievich Grigorenko, who was already the head of the Main Directorate. And suddenly Korolev comes into the reception room. He shook hands: “What are you doing here?” He told me about “lunar”. "This is my very best program“he says cheerfully. And then I was tormented by problems associated with the preparation of the launch complex for the N-1 rocket, which was designed to be shallowly buried, the so-called “three-lobe”. “Did you allow the depths of later Gagarin launches to be reduced?” — I quickly ask the question. "No". I'm asking about the start itself. “I haven’t seen his project yet,” he answers. “Sergei Pavlovich, do you know that a rocket will not launch from a three-lobe launch? We checked it on a mock-up,” I hurried. "What to do?" - “Design a new launch like the Gagarin one or make a launch tube, as in the mine versions.” “Okay,” Korolev sums up. - I'll call Barmin. I'll figure it out. Let's call you."

Then in the office with Grigorenko we drank dry Georgian wine. Sergei Pavlovich proposed a toast: “Well, guys, let’s have some fun. I wish you happiness!” He drank first and broke the glass on the floor. How he said goodbye to us.

Sergei Andreevich, why, in your opinion, was the N-1 lunar rocket plagued by failures: accidents followed one after another?

I am convinced that the “Lunner” died due to poor gas dynamics of the launch facility. Three-leaf start lunar program N-1, which the designers insisted on, “economically” reduced the volume of earthworks. But such “economy” masked the absence of the main condition for a normal launch - there was no room for the free passage of the rocket’s gas jet. And she burned herself at the start.

- Is it true that Korolev considered Baikonur the happiest place on earth?

Yes, along with Odessa, Moscow and the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. Why? When digging a pit for the “Gagarin” launch, an ancient fire pit was discovered at a depth of 35 meters. Several logs were already covered with silvery efflorescence. We urgently called archaeologists from the nearest city. But they never arrived. Then I put the remains of the fire in a box, and sent one log to the capital. From there, three months later, the answer came: the find is 10-30 thousand years old. Having learned about this, Sergei Pavlovich summarized: “The most important thing is that we are building a structure on the shore of the life of an ancient civilization, which means this place will be happy for us too.” And he put a small coal in a matchbox and took it with him.

- Tell me, didn’t the rocket scientists feel like white bones at the cosmodrome compared to the builders?

Never! We lived in equal conditions: it’s hard for everyone. I felt better, and so did everyone. The chief designer said: “Ground launch facilities are more than a rocket. A rocket without them is metal filled with equipment. And that’s why we treat builders the same way as we treat rocket scientists, because together they do one big thing.”

- Were there any anecdotal incidents in the history of the cosmodrome?

As much as you like. Let's say like this. For 1957, Korolev’s assistant ordered a tank of alcohol - 12 tons for flushing systems and so on. And only 7 tons were used. What to do? After all, they knew that the USSR State Supply Committee was another year will allocate no more "expense". The assistant called a bulldozer, dug a hole near the tank and poured the remaining alcohol into it. They covered it with sand. But someone sniffed it out, raked up the sand... They scooped it up with pots. So at the training ground where prohibition reigned, booze appeared. True, order was restored quickly - the remaining alcohol was simply burned off. And Sergei Pavlovich then sighed for a long time: “What a shame, such goodness goes to the ground!”

Let's read what the Director of the Institute of History of Natural Science and Technology of the Russian Academy of Sciences Baturin Yu.M. writes:

Life in the city, of course, was very tempting for residents of the surrounding villages, but it was still distinguished by modesty. Until the early 1990s, there was not a single bazaar there. Products could only be purchased in stores, and basic products were purchased using coupons. True, in the summer peasants brought and sold vegetables and fruits from their stalls. The bazaar appeared spontaneously in 1991, when there was absolutely nothing left in the stores. This place of the first, then semi-legal trade was called the “Field of Miracles.” On September 26, 1991, the city market was legalized. There were no public toilets in the city until beginning of the XXI century. There were mountains of garbage on the streets. There were few cars; they served mainly the facilities of the cosmodrome; old buses, colloquially referred to as “cattle carriers,” ran (rather rarely) on only four routes. In the summer, some of the buses were removed from the route and sent to transport residents to their dachas near the Krainy airfield.

By the way, it was difficult to get to the airfield. But it’s even more difficult to buy a ticket to Moscow: there were only two flights a week, Baikonur residents signed up for a month in advance and were constantly on duty at the only ticket office. Cosmonauts and technical specialists flew to Baikonur and back on special, non-scheduled aircraft. Military construction workers always had a hard time, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union, their living conditions became completely intolerable: the soldiers did not have clean linen, they did not go to the bathhouse for a long time, and even in cold weather they washed themselves on the street ice water; The food began to become completely bad.

And in February 1992, there was a riot of military builders. Thanks to the admonitions of local elders, tragedies were avoided, and the soldiers were sent “on leave”, from which almost no one returned, but they left everyone alone and did not bother them. A year later, the rocket soldiers who were preparing the Proton launch vehicle rebelled - due to the understaffing of the unit, each of them had to do three times more work than they were supposed to. There was a revolt of military construction workers in 2003, and the reason was unexpected. Reports about the construction of the Vostochny cosmodrome, to which Russia allegedly plans to transfer all its launches, including manned ones, have sparked rumors that the Baikonur cosmodrome will soon be closed and soldiers will be sent to serve in Siberia. As a result of the military leaving the cosmodrome, apartments in the city were vacated, many of them with furniture and belongings, since there were very few containers and those leaving abandoned everything just to leave. Abandoned apartments immediately began to be seized by residents of nearby villages, who sometimes settled in them along with goats and other living creatures. They began to steal plumbing fixtures and gas stoves from empty apartments.

As they say, for this reason, a gas leak and an explosion occurred in one of the houses, which claimed 16 lives. The dormitory, where technical specialists who came on long missions for space programs were accommodated, was nicknamed “Buchenwald” for its unsightly living conditions. When administrative functions in the city were transferred from military to civilian ones, confusion and rampant crime began. At first there was not even direct telephone communication between the Russian and Kazakh police.

Water was supplied according to schedule even to medical institutions. Thermal power plants began to be taken away from the military at the beginning of the heating season, as a result of which in winter the residents of Baikonur were left without heat at all and lived in tourist tents (whoever had them) placed right in the apartment. It seemed that Baikonur was dying. Many specialists left him forever. The situation was saved by a 1994 agreement, according to which Russia leased the spaceport from Kazakhstan for 20 years (it was later extended). A lot of money was allocated for the revival of Baikonur, but they began to be used in the same way as everywhere else in our time: when the city had no funds left to purchase bread, a strange explanation followed that they allegedly went to purchase Belgian ice cream, and then Dutch cheeses and chocolates.

In fact, the money was simply spent in banks.

Today the situation has improved, and Baikonur is now a completely unusual and difficult city: its mayor is appointed by decrees of two presidents at once - Kazakhstan and Russia. Both legislation is in force there - Kazakh and Russian (how? - a mystery, given that they diverge in many critical areas). Law enforcement agencies of Kazakhstan and Russia work harmoniously there, two courts, two military registration and enlistment offices, two registry offices and two currencies in use.

And most importantly, both citizens of Russia and citizens of Kazakhstan live there. There are no more problems with cold and hot water, electricity, gas, heating. New hotels, houses, hospitals, public gardens, schools have appeared where they teach in both Russian and Kazakh languages, sports clubs operate, a sports and fitness complex has been built, by the way, with a 50-meter Olympic swimming pool. New buses were added to the routes, private taxis appeared (taxis charge money from each passenger, even if they are traveling together, for example as a family). Baikonur has come to life and continues to provide space launches. One cannot deny the people of Baikonur a sense of humor, without which it was hardly possible to survive difficult times.

When a monument was erected at the entrance to the city, at the bottom of which miners are depicted emerging from the face, and the stele is crowned by the first satellite, it was immediately given the name “From the Cave to Space.” The city party committee once covered it with a huge shield with in capital letters“KPSS” is an ugly wasteland, and later on the street around the bend they put a shop with large glass display windows. The letters immediately began to be deciphered: “Whoever has a hangover – the glass on the right.” Another famous house with shops looked like this on the left - men's shoes, on the right - women's, and in the middle - a liquor store, which was immediately dubbed "Between the Legs". The only players who did not use this name were the football players who organized the “Fifth Grocery Store Championship” tournament on the field behind the store.

The entire history - Soviet and world - of the space era was also reflected in the folk toponymy of Baikonur. There are microdistricts “Malaya Zemlya” and “Japanese Islands”; in the early 1970s, another microdistrict was called “Damansky”.

Here are a few more legends of Baikonur:

Black shepherd

Baikonur - translated from Kazakh means “rich valley”. This is the name of the area in which the cosmodrome itself is located. The ancient nomads who lived in those desert places had interesting legend about the Black Shepherd, who built a huge sling from skins, filled it with hot stones and camel fat and threw these stones at enemies who were approaching his camp. Falling, hot stones and fat hit the enemies, but those who survived fled in horror. In those places where stones fell, nothing grew for a long time, and scorched marks remained on the ground. The nomads considered this valley the “navel of the earth.” According to experts, this legend is more than ten centuries old. Now, completely different “burning stones” are flying out of the giant “sling” of the cosmodrome - satellites and rockets. This is how the ancient legend found its reflection in the mirror of modernity.

A freethinker who was exiled to Baikonur.

Was he there? Of course not. This newspaper story appeared in the press in the seventies and generated a serious response from readers who took it at face value. “Moscow Provincial Gazette” allegedly reported in 1848: “The tradesman Nikifor Nikitin is to be exiled to the Kyrgyz-Kaisak steppe, to the village of Baikonur, for seditious speeches about a flight to the moon.” So joked one of the Dnepropetrovsk readers of Izvestia, who in 1974 sent a letter to the editor, in which he enclosed a clipping from the newspaper Dnepr Vecherniy. Later, when the press fuss began, the reader admitted that he had made it all up because he wanted to make a joke. There was no tradesman. There was no link.

And we will remember, and the most interesting The original article is on the website InfoGlaz.rf Link to the article from which this copy was made -

To launch spacecraft into space, in addition to the launch pad, a complex of structures is required where pre-launch activities are carried out: final assembly and docking of the launch vehicle and the spacecraft, pre-launch testing and diagnostics, refueling with fuel and oxidizer.
Typically, cosmodromes occupy a large area and are located at a considerable distance from densely populated areas in order to avoid damage in the event of accidents and falls of stages separated during flight.

Spaceports of the world

The closer the launch point is to the equator, the lower the energy consumption for launching the payload into space. When launched from the equator, it can save about 10% of fuel compared to a rocket launched from a spaceport located in mid-latitudes. Since there are not many states on the equator capable of launching rockets into space, projects for sea-based spaceports have appeared.

Russia

The Russian Federation, being a pioneer in the field of space exploration, currently holds the lead in the number of launches. In 2012, our country carried out 24 launches of launch vehicles, unfortunately not all were successful.

The largest “space haven” in Russia is the Baikonur Cosmodrome, leased from Kazakhstan. It is located on the territory of Kazakhstan, in the Kyzylorda region between the city of Kazalinsk and the village of Dzhusaly, near the village of Tyuratam. Spaceport area: 6717 km². Construction of the cosmodrome began in 1955. On August 21, 1957, the first successful launch of the R-7 rocket took place.

Diagram of the Baikonur cosmodrome

IN Soviet times In the Baikonur area, a huge infrastructure that has no analogues in the world was created, including, in addition to launch, preparatory and control complexes, airfields, access roads, service buildings and residential camps. After the collapse of the USSR, all this went to independent Kazakhstan.

Currently, Baikonur, after its transfer by the military in 2005, is under the jurisdiction of Roscosmos. By the end of 2007, most of the military space units left the cosmodrome; about 500 Russian military personnel remained at the cosmodrome.

Google Earth satellite image: launch pad No. 250

Google Earth satellite image: "Gagarin's launch"

Due to the position of the Kazakh side, the project to create a joint Russian-Kazakh rocket and space complex “Baiterek” (based on the new Angara launch vehicle) was not implemented. It was not possible to reach a compromise on the issue of financing the project. Russia will probably build a launch complex for Angara at the new Vostochny cosmodrome.

Proton-K launches the Zvezda module for the ISS into orbit

R-7 launch vehicle family

From the 70s to the early 90s, the Plesetsk cosmodrome held the world leadership in the number of rocket launches into space (from 1957 to 1993, 1372 launches were carried out from here, while only 917 from Baikonur, which was in 2nd place).
However, since the 1990s, the annual number of launches from Plesetsk has become less than from Baikonur. The cosmodrome is run by the military; in addition to launching satellites into orbit, test launches of ICBMs are periodically carried out from it.
The cosmodrome has stationary technical and launch complexes for domestic light and medium-class launch vehicles: Rokot, Cyclone-3, Cosmos-3M and Soyuz.

Google Earth satellite image: Soyuz launch pad

Launch of the Cyclone-3 rocket from the Plesetsk cosmodrome

The first launch of the Start 1.2 launch vehicle based on the Topol ballistic missile with the Zeya spacecraft took place on March 4, 1997. During the entire existence of the cosmodrome, five rocket launches were made here.

In 1999, a decision was made to build a rocket launch complex for the Strela launch vehicle at the cosmodrome. However, the Strela complex did not pass the state environmental assessment due to the high toxicity of the rocket fuel used in it - heptyl. In June 2005, at a meeting of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, it was decided as part of the reduction armed forces, liquidate the Svobodny cosmodrome due to the low intensity of launches and insufficient funding. However, already in 2007 it was decided to create an infrastructure here for launching medium-class launch vehicles. The future cosmodrome received the name “Vostochny”. It is expected that commercial and scientific launches will take place here, while all military launches are planned to take place from Plesetsk.

Launches of light launch vehicles of the Cosmos and Dnepr series were also carried out from the Kapustin Yar test site and the Yasny launch pad.

Promising air defense systems are currently being tested at the Kapustin Yar training ground in the Astrakhan region. In addition, launches of Cosmos series launch vehicles with military satellites take place periodically.

The Yasny complex is located on the territory of the Dombarovsky positional area of ​​the Strategic Missile Forces in the Yasnensky district of the Orenburg region of Russia. Used to launch spacecraft using Dnepr launch vehicles. From July 2006 to August 2013, six successful commercial launches were carried out.

Also in Russia, spacecraft were launched from strategic submarines.
July 7, 1998 from aboard the SSBN "Novomoskovsk" of project 667BDRM "Dolphin", while underwater, in the water area Barents Sea Two German commercial micro-satellites Tubsat-N were launched into low Earth orbit. This is the first in the history of space exploration to launch satellites into low-Earth orbit with a rocket launch from under water.
On May 26, 2006, the Compass 2 satellite was successfully launched from the Ekaterinburg SSBN of Project 667BDRM Dolphin.

USA

The most famous US spaceport is certainly the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Space Center. It is located on Merritt Island in Florida, the center of the spaceport is located near Cape Canaveral, midway between Miami and Jacksonville. Kennedy Space Center is a complex of space launch and mission control facilities (spaceport) owned by NASA. The dimensions of the cosmodrome are 55 km long and about 10 km wide, with an area of ​​567 km².

The cosmodrome was originally founded in 1950 as a missile testing site. The site's location was one of the most convenient in the United States, since spent rocket stages fall into the Atlantic Ocean. However, the location of the cosmodrome is associated with significant natural and meteorological risks. The space center's buildings and structures were repeatedly seriously damaged by hurricanes, and planned launches had to be postponed. So in September 2004, part of the Kennedy Space Center structures was damaged by Hurricane Frances. The vertical assembly building lost a thousand external panels of approximately 1.2 x 3.0 m each. The outer cladding covering an area of ​​3,700 m² was destroyed. The roof was partially torn off and there was extensive water damage to the interior.

Top view of the area of ​​launch complex No. 39

The Kennedy Space Center conducted all shuttle launches from Launch Complex 39. The center is served by approximately 15 thousand civilian employees and specialists.

Space Shuttle Atlantis

Part of the cosmodrome territory is open to the public; there are several museums, cinemas and exhibition grounds. Bus excursion routes are organized throughout the territory closed to the public. The cost of the bus tour is $38. It includes: a visit to the launch pads of complex No. 39 and a trip to the Apollo-Saturn V center, an overview of the tracking stations.

Google Earth satellite image: Cape Canaveral launch site

The second largest and most important US space infrastructure facility is the Vandenberg Air Force Base. The joint space command center is located here. It is home to the 14th Airlift Wing, 30th Space Wing, 381st Training Group and the Western Launch and Test Range, where military and commercial satellites are launched and intercontinental ballistic missiles are tested, including the Minuteman. 3".

Control and training firing of combat missiles is carried out mainly in a southwestern direction towards the Kwajalein and Canton atolls. The total length of the equipped route reaches 10 thousand km. Missile launches are carried out in a southerly direction. Due to the geographical location of the base, their entire flight route passes over uninhabited areas of the Pacific Ocean.

On December 16, 1958, the first Thor ballistic missile was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base. On February 28, 1959, the world's first polar-orbiting satellite, Discoverer 1, was launched from Vandenberg on a Tor-Agena launch vehicle. Vandenberg was chosen as the launch and landing site for the Space Shuttle on the West Coast of the United States.
To launch the shuttles, technical structures, an assembly building, and launch complex No. 6 were rebuilt. In addition, the base's existing 2,590-meter runway was extended to 4,580 meters to facilitate shuttle landings. Full maintenance and restoration of the orbital vehicle was carried out using equipment located here. However, the Challenger explosion led to the cancellation of all shuttle flights from the West Coast.

After the shuttle program was frozen at Vandenberg, Launch Complex 6 was once again converted to launch Delta IV launch vehicles. The first of the Delta IV series spacecraft launched from pad No. 6 was a rocket launched on June 27, 2006; it launched the NROL-22 reconnaissance satellite into orbit.

Launch of a Delta IV rocket from Vandenberg Space Center

For testing within the framework of the missile defense program, the Reagan Proving Ground is used. Launch sites are located on Kwajelein Atoll and Wake Island. It has been around since 1959. In 1999, the landfill was named after former president USA Ronald Reagan.

Since 2004, Omelek Island, which is part of the test site, has been the launch pad for the Falcon 1 launch vehicle created by SpaceX. A total of 4 orbital launch attempts were made from Omelek Island.

The first three ended unsuccessfully, the fourth rocket launched a mass-dimensional mock-up of the satellite into orbit. The first commercial launch occurred on July 13, 2009. The delay was caused by compatibility problems between the rocket and the Malaysian RazakSat satellite.
The Falcon 1 light launch vehicle is partially reusable; the first stage splashes down after separation and can be reused.

The Wallops Space Center is located on NASA-owned land and consists of three separate sites with a total area of ​​25 km²: the main base, the center on the mainland and Wallops Island, where the launch complex is located. The main base is located on the east coast of Virginia. It was founded in 1945, the first successful launch was made on February 16, 1961, when the Explorer-9 research satellite was launched into low-Earth orbit using the Scout X-1 launch vehicle. Has several starting complexes.

In 1986, NASA deployed a control and measurement complex on the territory of the test site to track and control the spacecraft flight. Several radars with antenna diameters of 2.4-26 m provide reception and high-speed transmission of information coming from objects directly to their owners. The technical capabilities of the complex make it possible to carry out trajectory measurements of objects located at a distance of 60 thousand km, with an accuracy of 3 m in range and up to 9 cm/s in speed.
Over the years of its existence, over 15 thousand rocket launches of various types were carried out from the station’s territory, including Lately There are about 30 starts per year.

Since 2006, part of the site has been leased by a private aerospace corporation and used for commercial launches under the name Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. In 2013, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer probe was launched to the Moon from the Wallops Space Center on a Minotaur-V launch vehicle.
Also here, launches of the Antares launch vehicle are carried out; in their first stage, two oxygen-kerosene rocket engines AJ-26 are installed - a modification of the NK-33 engine developed by Aerojet and licensed in the USA for use on American launch vehicles.

Antares launch vehicle

Another commercial spaceport was the Kodiak Launch Complex, located on the island of the same name off the coast of Alaska. It is designed to launch light rockets along a suborbital trajectory and launch small spacecraft into polar orbit.
The first experimental launch of a rocket from the cosmodrome took place on November 5, 1998. The first orbital launch took place on September 29, 2001, when the Athena-1 launch vehicle launched 4 small satellites into orbit.

Launch of the Afina-1 launch vehicle from the launch pad on Kodiak Island. September 30, 2001

Launch vehicle "Minotaur"

Another example of a private initiative is the reusable Space Ship One, developed by Scaled Composites LLC.

In 2012, 13 launch vehicles were launched in the United States. Although inferior to Russia in this indicator, the United States is actively working on the creation of promising launch vehicles and reusable spacecraft.

China

Currently, China is one of the top five space powers in the world. Successful exploration of outer space is largely determined by the level of development of satellite launch facilities, as well as cosmodromes with launching and control complexes. China has four spaceports (one is under construction).

The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center is China's first spaceport and missile test site and has been operating since 1958. The cosmodrome is located on the edge of the Badan-Jilin Desert in the lower reaches of the Heihe River in Gansu Province, named after the city of Jiuquan, located 100 kilometers from the cosmodrome. The testing ground at the cosmodrome has an area of ​​2800 km².

Google Earth satellite image: Jiuquan Cosmodrome

Launch vehicle "Long March-2F"

Launch vehicle "Long March-4"

In 1967, Mao Zedong decided to begin developing his own manned space program. The first Chinese spacecraft, Shuguang-1, was supposed to send two astronauts into orbit as early as 1973. Especially for him, construction of a cosmodrome, also known as “Base 27,” began in Sichuan province, near the city of Xichang.

The cosmodrome has two launch complexes and three launchers.
The first launch complex provides: assembly, pre-launch preparation and launch of medium-class launch vehicles of the CZ-3 family (“Long March-3”), launch weight up to: 425,800 kg.

Google Earth satellite image: Sichan cosmodrome

The first launch of CZ-3B/E took place on May 13, 2007, when the NigComSat-1 telecommunications satellite was launched into geosynchronous orbit. On October 30, 2008, the Venesat-1 satellite was launched into orbit.

Launch vehicle "Long March 3"

Today, the launch vehicle of this modification is the most “load-lifting”. It has repeatedly launched satellites into orbit, and has also been used for manned flights.

Over the years of its existence, the Sichan cosmodrome has already successfully carried out more than 50 launches of Chinese and foreign satellites.

Taiyuan Cosmodrome is located in the northern province of Shanxi, near the city of Taiyuan. In operation since 1988.

Google Earth satellite image: Taiyuan Space Launch Center

Launches of the following types of launch vehicles are carried out here: CZ-4B and CZ-2C/SM. The CZ-4 launch vehicle is built on the basis of the CZ-2C launch vehicle and differs from it by a new third stage using long-lasting fuel.

The fourth Wenchang spaceport under construction is located near the city of Wenchang on the northeastern coast of Hainan Island. The choice of this place as a site for the construction of a new cosmodrome was determined primarily by two factors: firstly, its proximity to the equator, and secondly, its location on the seashore with convenient bays, which facilitates the delivery of CZ-5 launch vehicles (Great March -5) heavy class with a launch weight of 643,000 kg, from the Tianjin plant. The future space center according to the project will occupy an area of ​​up to 30 km2. The first launch of the CZ-5 launch vehicle from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center is scheduled for 2014.

Today, China demonstrates the highest rates of space exploration. The volume of investments and the number of scientific programs in this area significantly exceed the indicators in Russia. To speed up work, every year hundreds of Chinese specialists receive education in specialized educational institutions around the world. The Chinese do not disdain direct copying; so much in the Chinese manned spacecraft Shenzhou is repeated by the Russian Soyuz spacecraft.

Descent module of the Shenzhou-5 spacecraft

France

The Kourou spaceport is located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, on a strip approximately 60 km long and 20 km wide between the towns of Kourou and Sinnamary, 50 km from the capital of French Guiana - Cayenne.

Launch of the Ariane 5 rocket

Google Earth satellite image: Kourou Cosmodrome

Launch of the Vega launch vehicle

Baikonur. Soyuz rocket launch position. COSMODROME (from cosmos and Greek dromos running, a place for running), a complex of structures, equipment and land intended for the assembly, preparation and launch of spacecraft. In 1946 there was... ... Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary

COSMODROME- (from cosmos and Greek dromos running, a place for running), a complex of structures, equipment and land intended for the assembly, preparation and launch of spacecraft. In 1946, the first cosmodrome in the USSR, Kapustin Yar, was founded, in 1955... ... Modern encyclopedia

cosmodrome- star harbor, utinoura, space harbor, plesetsk, wallops, changchenjie, tanegashima, baikonur Dictionary of Russian synonyms. cosmodrome noun, number of synonyms: 9 Baikonur (2) ... Synonym dictionary

COSMODROME- (from cosmos and Greek dromos running, a place for running), a complex of structures and technical means for assembling, preparing and launching spacecraft. Includes a technical position, launch complex and service facilities (measuring points... Big encyclopedic Dictionary

COSMODROME- COSMODROME, huh, husband. A complex of structures and technical means for launching spacecraft, artificial Earth satellites and other spacecraft. | adj. cosmodrome, oh, oh. Dictionary Ozhegova. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949… … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

COSMODROME- a complex of structures, technical means and alienated (for security purposes) land zones, designed for assembly, preparation for launch and launch of space aircraft. K. includes a technical position, a launch complex... ... Big Polytechnic Encyclopedia

cosmodrome- a specially prepared area with structures and equipment placed on it for assembling, testing and launching launch vehicles with spacecraft. The modern cosmodrome includes installation, testing, launch and... ... Encyclopedia of technology

Cosmodrome- (from Cosmos and Greek drómos running, place for running) a complex of structures, equipment and land intended for receiving, assembling, preparing for launch and launching space rockets. Some K. include land plots for falling... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

cosmodrome- A; m. [from Greek. kosmos the universe and dromos a place to run; running] A complex of structures and technical means designed for the assembly, preparation and launch of spacecraft. * * * cosmodrome (from space and Greek drómos running, place... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Books

• Cosmodrome "Plesetsk". Years and Fates, V. Bukrin, N. Prokopenko. This book, dedicated to the fortieth anniversary of the creation of the first objects of the future Plesetsk cosmodrome, was written by V. Bukrin and N. Prokopenko. It is about the main asset of the cosmodrome - its people... Buy for 1300 rubles
• Cosmodrome. Astronauts. Space, A. Romanov. "Sunrise", "Soyuz". The probes “Zond”, “Electron”, “Meteor”, “Proton”, and a whole series of Earth satellites “Cosmos” and “Molniya” have visited the vastness of space. Many secrets of the Universe have been revealed, and it begins...

Modern Russian cosmodromes are objects that play a vital role in science, economics, socio-political, cultural communications at the most different levels. There are both operating and under construction launch sites in the Russian Federation. Where are the Russian cosmodromes located? What kind of objects are they currently represented by?

What kind of cosmodromes operate in the Russian Federation?

Baikonur, Plesetsk, Kapustin Yar, Yasny, Svobodny and the Vostochny one under construction are modern Russian cosmodromes. The list of relevant objects, of course, can be adjusted depending on how the infrastructure involved in the implementation of the Russian space program will be distributed. It is possible that, due to the large area of ​​certain cosmodromes, as well as the complexity of the tasks solved at them, new launch pads will be opened, current ones will be closed and moved to another location. But at the moment, the Russian cosmodromes mentioned above can generally be considered as a fairly well-established system of facilities for the corresponding purpose. Let us now consider the specifics of each of them in more detail.

"Baikonur" is the main cosmodrome within the framework of the Russian space programs

Baikonur is a cosmodrome that belongs not to Russia, but to Kazakhstan, but the Russian Federation is practically its only user. Its main operators are RSC Energia, TsSKB Progress, State Research and Production Space Center named after. M. V. Khrunicheva, Yuzhny Space Center. Baikonur was built in 1955. This facility was leased by the Russian government from the Republic of Kazakhstan for 50 years. The cost of using the cosmodrome is about 5 billion rubles per year - 3.5 billion is, in fact, rent, 1.5 billion is funds allocated by the Russian Federation to maintain the functionality of the facility’s infrastructure.

Baikonur, despite its legal affiliation with Kazakhstan, is traditionally regarded as a Russian cosmodrome. It is known for the fact that the Earth, the first manned spacecraft, and various scientific satellites were launched from it. Now Baikonur is the largest of all objects of the corresponding type that are used in the Russian space industry. Its total area is about 6717 square meters. km. Over the past few years, this Russian cosmodrome has been the world leader in the number of launches.

Infrastructure of the Baikonur cosmodrome

The Baikonur infrastructure is represented, in particular, by the following objects:

9 launch complexes of various categories;

15 launchers designed to launch rockets that launch satellites and ships into space;

4 launchers used for ballistic missile testing;

11 buildings designed for installation and testing of equipment for various purposes;

34 complexes adapted for the pre-launch preparation of rockets and vehicles for various purposes launched into space by them;

3 stations where launch vehicles and other spacecraft are refueled with various types of fuel;

Measuring complex;

Information and computing center in which monitoring, as well as spacecraft flight control and processing is carried out various types data;

Oxygen-nitrogen production complex capable of producing about 300 tons of various types of cryogenic products per day;

CHP with a capacity of 60 MW;

A 72 MW power train operating on gas turbines;

There are 600 objects;

Communication nodes in the amount of 92 units;

Aerodromes - “Extreme” and “Yubileiny”;

Local railway infrastructure with a total length of about 470 km;

Automotive infrastructure with a length of about 1281 km;

Power lines are 6610 km, communications lines are 2784 km.

Having examined the main features of the largest cosmodrome involved in the Russian space program, we will study the specifics of other objects of the same type that operate in Russia.

"Kapustin Yar"

Many researchers tend to consider Kapustin Yar more like a military training ground. But in many ways it can also be considered a cosmodrome, primarily due to the fact that test launches of ballistic missiles are carried out from it - with warheads that are launched into open space. Kapustin Yar was built in 1946.

This Russian cosmodrome is located mainly in, but some of its territories are part of the Atyrau, as well as the West Kazakhstan regions of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Its total area is about 650 square meters. km. This cosmodrome has its own administrative center - the city of Znamensk. Not far from it there is a military airfield.

"Clear"

Experts most often consider the Yasny cosmodrome as a launch base - but for rockets, again, intended for launch into outer space. Actively used since 2006. This relatively new cosmodrome is located in Russia, in the Yasnensky district, which is located in the Orenburg region.

The main operator of the facility is the international corporation Kosmotras. The spaceport infrastructure is used mainly for launching various satellites into low-Earth orbit. At the same time, the Dnepr rocket of Russian-Ukrainian production is most often used to solve the corresponding problems.

"Plesetsk"

The northernmost cosmodrome in Russia is Plesetsk. It is located approximately 180 km from Arkhangelsk - south of the city. The area of ​​the facility is about 176.2 hectares. Plesetsk began operating as a cosmodrome in 1966. It can launch missiles belonging to the R-7 family and others that belong to similar classes.

The northernmost cosmodrome in Russia, as some analysts note, has a record for the total number of rocket launches into space carried out from it.

"Free"

The Svobodny cosmodrome is located in the Amur region. It has been in operation since 1996. This Russian cosmodrome has an area of ​​410 square meters. km, and has the infrastructure for launching light and medium-class missiles. An interesting fact is that the construction of Svobodny was initiated due to the fact that after the collapse of the USSR, the main Soviet cosmodrome Baikonur found itself outside the Russian Federation, and the leaders of the Russian space program decided that the state needed its own facility for the corresponding purpose. In practice at that time the most eastern cosmodrome Russia, after the start of operation, was used, in particular, for the purpose of test launches of ballistic missiles - such as Topol. Now it is practically not actively used, this is largely due to the fact that a new facility is being built in the Far East - the Vostochny cosmodrome. Let us consider, in turn, the basic information about it.

"Oriental"

This is the newest and easternmost cosmodrome in Russia. It began construction in 2010. It will be located, by the way, not far from Svobodny, which is expected to be disbanded in connection with the installation of the main infrastructure at Vostochny and the subsequent optimization of logistics for the specifics of the new facility.

It is calculated that the easternmost cosmodrome under construction in Russia will occupy an area of ​​about 1035 square meters. km. Its creation is intended to solve the following the most important tasks: Russia’s acquisition of its own cosmodrome, adapted for launching any types of rockets, the formation of additional impulses for the intensive development of the Far Eastern territories of the Russian Federation. This region is given Special attention in state socio-economic programs, and the construction of a corresponding facility is considered here as one of the most significant factors in the successful implementation of these initiatives.

Vostochny is a Russian cosmodrome, which has a number of advantages, in particular, over Baikonur. So, for example, the flight paths of missiles that will be launched from here are located outside densely populated and foreign countries - they are laid over neutral waters. In addition, a significant factor is where the cosmodrome in Russia is located - namely, in close proximity to developed transport infrastructure. This makes the operation of Vostochny especially profitable. At the same time, some experts also highlight a number of shortcomings in the design of the corresponding object of the Russian space program. First of all, it is noted that Vostochny is located 6 degrees north of Baikonur - therefore, the total mass of the payload that is launched into space at the Russian cosmodrome will be slightly lower.

When will launches from Vostochny begin?

When will Russia's easternmost cosmodrome be opened and put into operation?

It was initially assumed that the first from the relevant facility would be carried out at the end of 2015. But at the moment it has been postponed to 2016. As for launches of a manned spacecraft from Vostochny, the first should take place in 2016. The personnel of the new Russian cosmodrome will live in the city of Uglegorsk, which is located in the Amur region - in close proximity to the facility under construction. The administrative bodies of Vostochny will be located in the same city. By the way, some of the cosmodrome’s infrastructure facilities may be built outside the Amur region. It is assumed that from Vostochny it will be possible to launch missiles of almost any type - light, medium and heavy - such as, for example, Angara, the successful tests of which were carried out in the Russian Federation in 2014.

Summary

Thus, modern Russian cosmodromes are represented by 5 operating facilities - Svobodny can be counted among these for now, since it still has infrastructure, and one under construction. They are located in various parts of the Russian Federation - in the south of the European part of the country, in the north, in the Far East. The largest cosmodrome involved in the Russian space program is located in Kazakhstan. Soon it will share its functions, which include launching all popular types of rockets, with the Vostochny cosmodrome, which is being built in the Amur region.