Russian launch sites

The three main Russian launch centers, or cosmodromes, are Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kaputsin Yar, and Plesetsk Cosmodrome. One of the problems with the location of these is that spent Russian rocket stages, unlike their American counterparts, tend to fall on land rather than into the ocean. The arctic tundra around Pletesk is littered with debris which the locals refer to as "metal from heaven." Residents of Dzhezkazgan, which lies close to the flight path of rockets from Baikonur, have complained that toxic fuel from crashed rocket stages has contaminated the soil and made it impossible to graze lifestock. For this reason, the latest generation of Russian rockets, including the Angara and Zenit launch vehicles, burn a more environmentally-friendly mixture of propellants.

Related category

• LAUNCH SITES

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