Baikonur

Uncommon card · No. 158211

Baikonur is a city in Kazakhstan on the northern bank of the Syr Darya river. It is currently leased and administered by the Russian Federation until 2050. It was constructed to serve the Baikonur Cosmodrome with administrative offices and employee housing. During the Soviet period, the town was known as Leninsk, and was sometimes referred to as Zvezdograd (Russian: Звездоград, lit. 'Star City'). It was officially renamed Baikonur by Russian president Boris Yeltsin on December 20, 1995. The Russian controlled area is an ellipse measuring 90 kilometres (56 mi) east to west by 85 km (53 mi) north to south, with the cosmodrome situated at the area's centre. Foreign visitors and tourists can visit the cosmodrome and city but need to obtain a specific permit from Roscosmos.

Read on Wikipedia · Image Bill Ingalls, Public domain