Baikonur (Karagandy Region)
Baikonur is a small mining town in central Kazakhstan near Jezkazgan. Coal mining began in 1914.
Baikonur | |
|---|---|
  Baikonur Location in Kazakhstan  Baikonur Baikonur (Asia) | |
| Coordinates: 47°49′23″N 66°2′50″E | |
| Country |  |
| Region | Karaganda Region |
| Population (2009) | |
| • Total | 427 |
| Time zone | UTC+6 (UTC+6) |
In 1961, the name was appropriated for the Baikonur Cosmodrome about 320 kilometres southwest of the older mining town; some sources state this was done in order to keep the actual location of the cosmodrome secret[1][2]. Leninsk, the town built to support the cosmodrome, was renamed Baikonur in 1995 after the fall of the Soviet Union.
References
- Suvorov, Vladimir (1997). The first manned spaceflight: Russia's quest for space. Nova Publishers. pp. 16–17. ISBN 978-1-56072-402-5.
- "The Partnership: A History of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project". NASA.
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