For the past five years, Russia has been building a new spaceport in its Far East, about 3,500 miles (5,500 kilometers) away from Moscow, called the Vostochny Cosmodrome. Russia is seeking to reduce its dependence on the existing Baikonur Cosmodrome, located in Kazakhstan, for both civilian and military launches. The first successful launch took place late last week, on April 28, 2016. The building-out of Vostochny continues, as many support facilities and another six launch pads are planned.
Russia's New Spaceport: The Vostochny Cosmodrome
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Read moreA Russian Soyuz 2.1A rocket carrying Lomonosov, Aist-2D, and SamSat-218 satellites lifts off from the launch pad at the new Vostochny Cosmodrome outside the city of Uglegorsk, in the far-eastern Amur region of Russia, on April 28, 2016. #
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Read moreRussia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (far right) listens to explanations during a visit to a building at Russia's National Space Center Vostochny in the town of Uglegorsk on August 28, 2010. #
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Read moreRussian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev takes pictures with his phone from aboard a helicopter while in flight from the city of Blagoveshchensk to the Vostochny Cosmodrome near the village of Uglegorsk on August 21, 2015. #
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Read moreA picture taken on July 14, 2015 shows the launch pad under construction at the Vostochny Cosmodrome. #
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Read moreRussian President Vladimir Putin (right) listens as head of the Federal Space Agency Igor Komarov (left) speaks during Putin's visit to the Vostochny Space Center, still under construction, on October 14, 2015. #
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Read moreConstruction works continue at a space launch pad at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on October 13, 2015. #
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Read moreA picture taken on July 14, 2015 shows a worker at the construction site of the Vostochny Cosmodrome. #
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Read moreConstruction work continues at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on November 1, 2015. #
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Read moreConstruction at a launch pad, part of the Vostochny Cosmodrome, on October 13, 2015. #
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Read moreA launch pad under construction at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on October 13, 2015. #
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Read moreAn office building at the Vostochny Cosmodrome photographed on October 13, 2015. #
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Read moreA launch pad test of a Soyuz-2.1a booster rocket at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on March 21, 2016. #
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Read moreA launch pad test of a Soyuz-2.1a booster rocket at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on March 21, 2016. #
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Read moreA Russian Soyuz 2.1a rocket carrying Lomonosov, Aist-2D and SamSat-218 satellites lifts off from the launch pad at the new Vostochny Cosmodrome outside the city of Uglegorsk, on April 28, 2016. #
Kirill Kudryavtsev / Reuters -
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Read moreA Russian Soyuz 2.1a rocket, the first to launch from Russia’s new Vostochny Cosmodrome, lifts off on April 28, 2016. #
Kirill Kudryavtsev / Reuters
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