Stunning images of Russia’s forgotten space program

Alex Mead

featured

Nov 24, 2021

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Kazakhstan: Buran spacecraft at Baikonur Cosmodrome

Eerie photos of Russia’s forgotten chapter in the space race. Images show inside an abandoned Soviet assembling and refueling complex near the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. ZUMAPRESS.com

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Two flight units of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle program lay abandoned amongst a crumbling hangar. They were intended to rival NASA’s Space Shuttle orbiters. ZUMAPRESS.com

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On November 15, 1988, a Buran space shuttle made two circles around the Earth’s orbit and landed at the Yubileiny airfield at Baikonur Cosmodrome. Picture shows the shattered space windows of a shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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After just one test flight in 1988 the main Buran shuttle and its sister vehicles were scrapped. Picture shows the shattered space windows of a shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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Picture shows the shattered space windows of a shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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A mock-up of the Energia rocket carrier that carried the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle to the orbit. ZUMAPRESS.com

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Installation platforms for the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The operations and checkout facility. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The flight unit of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The Energia-Buran system launch facility for the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle at Baikonur Cosmodrome. ZUMAPRESS.com

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A mock-up of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle is on display at the Baikonur Cosmodrome History Museum. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The cockpit of a mock-up of the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle on display at the Baikonur Cosmodrome History Museum. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The Energia-Buran system launch facility for the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle at Baikonur Cosmodrome. ZUMAPRESS.com

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The Energia-Buran system launch facility for the Buran Soviet/Russian reusable space shuttle at Baikonur Cosmodrome. ZUMAPRESS.com

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