🕷️ Crawler Inspector

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Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 84 (from laksa138)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa084.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html","crawl_time":1767998649,"first_indexed_time":1552330041,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,nytimes!www,\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html s443","src_root_hash":"4566504020376537684","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"From Russia, With Thrusters - The New York Times","meta_descriptions":["As another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"As another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport.\nCredit...\nMarch 11, 2019\nBAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — More than a half-century ago, the launch site here became the first place to send humans into space. It is still our main route to the heavens, at least for now.\nAs these photos suggest, time has since put a wrinkle or two or three on the massive Baikonur Cosmodrome, some 1,300 miles southeast of Moscow.\nIt was at Baikonur that the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, shocking America and beginning the space race in earnest. The United States worked furiously to catch up to, and eventually surpass, the Soviet program. In 1961, Yuri Gagarin left Baikonur for a single orbit of the Earth.\nToday, Russians, Americans and travelers from other nations team up on missions launched from the Baikonur site, described by Vladimir V. Putin six years ago as “physically aged.” Besides all the liftoffs, Baikonur serves as a tourist draw, offering a museum, tours and even an opportunity to take a zero gravity flight.\n[\nSign up to get reminders for space and astronomy events on your calendar\n.]\nOn Dec. 3, the crew of Soyuz MS-11 — with Anne McClain of the United States, Oleg Kononenko of Russia and David Saint-Jacques of Canada — took off for the International Space Station. On Thursday, two more Americans and a Russian will travel there. One of the Americans on that trip, Christina Koch, plans to join Ms. McClain in the first all-female spacewalk.\nSince the final space shuttle flight in 2011, American astronauts have had to hitch rides on Russian ships to get to the space station. NASA’s current strategy is to use private companies — Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Boeing — to carry Americans into space. Mr. Musk, fresh from\na successful uncrewed\nlaunch this month, hopes this year to end Baikonur’s status as the exclusive provider of human travel to the space station.\nImage\nA hall at the Baikonur cosmodrome dedicated to the International Space Station.\nImage\nIn the Museum of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, a mannequin used in rocket testing and a painting of Moscow.\nImage\nRockets, planes, kites and other flying objects at the cosmodrome's  International Space School.\nImage\nOne of the cosmodrome's launch complexes.\nCredit...\nMaxim Babenko for The New York Times\nImage\nKazakh culture on display in the City Museum of Baikonur.\nImage\nA performance in the City Palace of Culture of Baikonur.\nImage\nAt the space school, a small rocket was successfully launched.\nImage\nA model of Baikonur’s various launch complexes.\nImage\nThe Buran spacecraft, a Soviet shuttle that completed only one uncrewed flight in 1988.\nImage\nSecurity at the site of the rocket, two days before lift-off.\nImage\nThe rocket being towed to the launch site.\nImage\nThe crew of Soyuz MS-11, including flight engineer Ann McClain of NASA, left, and commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, en route to the launch pad. The third crew member, flight engineer David Saint-Jacques, is with the Canadian Space Agency.\nImage\nCommander Kononenko shared a moment with the crowd before being bused to the launch pad.\nImage\nSeconds into the launch.\nImage\nSpectators saw off the three newest visitors to the International Space Station.\nImage\nAfter Soyuz’s initial liftoff, the audience was ushered to a tent to continue watching the rocket’s progress into space.\nImage\nPants belonging to Anousheh Ansari, the first privately funded female space tourist to the International Space Station.\nImage\nA monument to the Nedelin disaster of 1960, which killed dozens when a missile prototype being prepared for a test flight exploded.\nImage\nA bust of Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, in the courtyard of the cosmodrome museum.\nA version of this article appears in print on\nMarch 12, 2019\n, Section D, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: From Russia, With Thruster: 62 Years After Sputnik, Still Looking Skyward\n.\nOrder Reprints\n|\nToday’s Paper\n|\nSubscribe\nAdvertisement\nSKIP ADVERTISEMENT","attrs_markdown":"[Skip to content](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#site-content)[Skip to site index](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#site-index)\n\nSearch & Section Navigation\n\nSection Navigation\n\nSearch\n\n[Log in](https:\/\/myaccount.nytimes.com\/auth\/login?response_type=cookie&client_id=vi&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2Fsubscription%2Fonboarding-offer%3FcampaignId%3D7JFJX%26EXIT_URI%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2019%252F03%252F11%252Fscience%252Fbaikonur-soyuz-space.html&asset=masthead)\n\n[Science](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/section\/science)\\|From Russia, With Thrusters\n\nhttps:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html\n\n- Share full article\n- 6\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-verticalization\/merlin_147854043_d261b920-7170-4bcf-88b2-c8f04632cb7a-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\n# From Russia, With Thrusters\nAs another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport.\n\nCredit...\n\nSupported by\n\n[SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#after-sponsor)\n\n- Share full article\n- 6\n\nPhotographs by Maxim Babenko\n\nText by Steve Bell\n\n- March 11, 2019\n\n[Leer en español](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/es\/2019\/03\/14\/estacion-espacial-baikonur-soyuz\/ \"Read in Spanish\")\n\nBAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — More than a half-century ago, the launch site here became the first place to send humans into space. It is still our main route to the heavens, at least for now.\n\nAs these photos suggest, time has since put a wrinkle or two or three on the massive Baikonur Cosmodrome, some 1,300 miles southeast of Moscow.\n\nIt was at Baikonur that the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, shocking America and beginning the space race in earnest. The United States worked furiously to catch up to, and eventually surpass, the Soviet program. In 1961, Yuri Gagarin left Baikonur for a single orbit of the Earth.\n\nToday, Russians, Americans and travelers from other nations team up on missions launched from the Baikonur site, described by Vladimir V. Putin six years ago as “physically aged.” Besides all the liftoffs, Baikonur serves as a tourist draw, offering a museum, tours and even an opportunity to take a zero gravity flight.\n\n***\\[*****[*Sign up to get reminders for space and astronomy events on your calendar*](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2019\/science\/astronomy-space-calendar.html)*****.\\]***\n\nOn Dec. 3, the crew of Soyuz MS-11 — with Anne McClain of the United States, Oleg Kononenko of Russia and David Saint-Jacques of Canada — took off for the International Space Station. On Thursday, two more Americans and a Russian will travel there. One of the Americans on that trip, Christina Koch, plans to join Ms. McClain in the first all-female spacewalk.\n\nSince the final space shuttle flight in 2011, American astronauts have had to hitch rides on Russian ships to get to the space station. NASA’s current strategy is to use private companies — Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Boeing — to carry Americans into space. Mr. Musk, fresh from [a successful uncrewed](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/01\/science\/spacex-crew-dragon-launch.html) launch this month, hopes this year to end Baikonur’s status as the exclusive provider of human travel to the space station.\n\nImage![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-isshall\/merlin_147853947_c901734b-bb5b-446b-881e-b32b591c6cec-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nA hall at the Baikonur cosmodrome dedicated to the International Space Station.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-mannequin\/merlin_147854115_420faa52-73d9-40df-b383-e350ca7c0883-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nIn the Museum of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, a mannequin used in rocket testing and a painting of Moscow.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool\/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nRockets, planes, kites and other flying objects at the cosmodrome's International Space School.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-launchcomplex\/merlin_147854142_e89b599c-2e64-4894-917c-0f29330f7ceb-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nOne of the cosmodrome's launch complexes.Credit...Maxim Babenko for The New York Times\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-citymuseum\/12SCI-COSMODROME-citymuseum-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nKazakh culture on display in the City Museum of Baikonur.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-dance\/12SCI-COSMODROME-dance-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nA performance in the City Palace of Culture of Baikonur.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool2\/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool2-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nAt the space school, a small rocket was successfully launched.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-model\/merlin_147854121_333de82c-6561-469d-a2b3-111d6a58cdaf-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nA model of Baikonur’s various launch complexes.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-buran\/merlin_147854124_cfd5b038-db8c-4dac-b64d-1a209e975425-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nThe Buran spacecraft, a Soviet shuttle that completed only one uncrewed flight in 1988.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-security\/12SCI-COSMODROME-security-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nSecurity at the site of the rocket, two days before lift-off.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-prelaunch2\/12SCI-COSMODROME-prelaunch2-articleLarge-v2.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nThe rocket being towed to the launch site.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-astronauts\/12SCI-COSMODROME-astronauts-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nThe crew of Soyuz MS-11, including flight engineer Ann McClain of NASA, left, and commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, en route to the launch pad. The third crew member, flight engineer David Saint-Jacques, is with the Canadian Space Agency.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-oleg\/12SCI-COSMODROME-oleg-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nCommander Kononenko shared a moment with the crowd before being bused to the launch pad.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch\/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nSeconds into the launch.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch2\/merlin_147853893_4a8fe9e6-97a0-40bb-b023-74aa66ec3e48-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nSpectators saw off the three newest visitors to the International Space Station.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-audience\/12SCI-COSMODROME-audience-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nAfter Soyuz’s initial liftoff, the audience was ushered to a tent to continue watching the rocket’s progress into space.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-pants\/merlin_147853968_bdec7414-e688-4b12-be45-3eb0a633c212-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nPants belonging to Anousheh Ansari, the first privately funded female space tourist to the International Space Station.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SCI-COSMODROME-memorial\/merlin_147854157_87a37df8-f5be-4711-bfd0-095677db73e5-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nA monument to the Nedelin disaster of 1960, which killed dozens when a missile prototype being prepared for a test flight exploded.\n\nImage\n\n![](https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2019\/03\/12\/science\/12SC-COSMODROME-gagarin\/12SC-COSMODROME-gagarin-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale)\n\nA bust of Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, in the courtyard of the cosmodrome museum.\n\nA version of this article appears in print on March 12, 2019, Section D, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: From Russia, With Thruster: 62 Years After Sputnik, Still Looking Skyward. [Order Reprints](https:\/\/nytimes.wrightsmedia.com\/) \\| [Today’s Paper](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/section\/todayspaper) \\| [Subscribe](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscriptions\/Multiproduct\/lp8HYKU.html?campaignId=48JQY)\n\nRead six comments\n\n- Share full article\n- 6\n## Related Content\nAdvertisement\n\n[SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/03\/11\/science\/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#after-bottom)\n## Site Index\n## Site Information Navigation\n- [© 2026 The New York Times Company](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/115014792127-Copyright-Notice)\n\n- [NYTCo](https:\/\/www.nytco.com\/)\n- [Contact Us](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/115015385887-Contact-The-New-York-Times)\n- [Accessibility](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/115015727108-Accessibility)\n- [Work with us](https:\/\/www.nytco.com\/careers\/)\n- [Advertise](https:\/\/advertising.nytimes.com\/)\n- [T Brand Studio](https:\/\/advertising.nytimes.com\/custom-content\/)\n- [Privacy Policy](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/10940941449492-The-New-York-Times-Company-Privacy-Policy)\n- [Cookie Policy](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/privacy\/cookie-policy)\n- [Terms of Service](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/115014893428-Terms-of-Service)\n- [Terms of Sale](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us\/articles\/115014893968-Terms-of-Sale)\n- [Site Map](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/sitemap\/)\n- [Canada](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/ca\/)\n- [International](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/international\/)\n- [Help](https:\/\/help.nytimes.com\/hc\/en-us)\n- [Subscriptions](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscription?campaignId=37WXW)\n\n- [Your Privacy Choices](https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/privacy\/your-privacy-choices)","attrs_readable_markdown":null,"meta_canonical":null}

3. Robots.txt Check

Query:

Response:

4. Spam/Ban Check

Query:

Response:

5. Seen Status Check

ℹ️ Skipped - page is already crawled

📄

INDEXABLE

✅

CRAWLED

3 months ago

🤖

ROBOTS ALLOWED

Page Info Filters

Filter	Status	Condition	Details
HTTP status	PASS	`download_http_code = 200`	HTTP 200
Age cutoff	PASS	`download_stamp > now() - 6 MONTH`	3.2 months ago
History drop	PASS	`isNull(history_drop_reason)`	No drop reason
Spam/ban	PASS	`fh_dont_index != 1 AND ml_spam_score = 0`	ml_spam_score=0
Canonical	PASS	`meta_canonical IS NULL OR = '' OR = src_unparsed`	Not set

Page Details

Property	Value
URL	https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html
Last Crawled	2026-01-09 22:44:09 (3 months ago)
First Indexed	2019-03-11 18:47:21 (7 years ago)
HTTP Status Code	200
Meta Title	From Russia, With Thrusters - The New York Times
Meta Description	As another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport.
Meta Canonical	null
Boilerpipe Text	As another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport. Credit... March 11, 2019 BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — More than a half-century ago, the launch site here became the first place to send humans into space. It is still our main route to the heavens, at least for now. As these photos suggest, time has since put a wrinkle or two or three on the massive Baikonur Cosmodrome, some 1,300 miles southeast of Moscow. It was at Baikonur that the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, shocking America and beginning the space race in earnest. The United States worked furiously to catch up to, and eventually surpass, the Soviet program. In 1961, Yuri Gagarin left Baikonur for a single orbit of the Earth. Today, Russians, Americans and travelers from other nations team up on missions launched from the Baikonur site, described by Vladimir V. Putin six years ago as “physically aged.” Besides all the liftoffs, Baikonur serves as a tourist draw, offering a museum, tours and even an opportunity to take a zero gravity flight. [ Sign up to get reminders for space and astronomy events on your calendar .] On Dec. 3, the crew of Soyuz MS-11 — with Anne McClain of the United States, Oleg Kononenko of Russia and David Saint-Jacques of Canada — took off for the International Space Station. On Thursday, two more Americans and a Russian will travel there. One of the Americans on that trip, Christina Koch, plans to join Ms. McClain in the first all-female spacewalk. Since the final space shuttle flight in 2011, American astronauts have had to hitch rides on Russian ships to get to the space station. NASA’s current strategy is to use private companies — Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Boeing — to carry Americans into space. Mr. Musk, fresh from a successful uncrewed launch this month, hopes this year to end Baikonur’s status as the exclusive provider of human travel to the space station. Image A hall at the Baikonur cosmodrome dedicated to the International Space Station. Image In the Museum of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, a mannequin used in rocket testing and a painting of Moscow. Image Rockets, planes, kites and other flying objects at the cosmodrome's International Space School. Image One of the cosmodrome's launch complexes. Credit... Maxim Babenko for The New York Times Image Kazakh culture on display in the City Museum of Baikonur. Image A performance in the City Palace of Culture of Baikonur. Image At the space school, a small rocket was successfully launched. Image A model of Baikonur’s various launch complexes. Image The Buran spacecraft, a Soviet shuttle that completed only one uncrewed flight in 1988. Image Security at the site of the rocket, two days before lift-off. Image The rocket being towed to the launch site. Image The crew of Soyuz MS-11, including flight engineer Ann McClain of NASA, left, and commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, en route to the launch pad. The third crew member, flight engineer David Saint-Jacques, is with the Canadian Space Agency. Image Commander Kononenko shared a moment with the crowd before being bused to the launch pad. Image Seconds into the launch. Image Spectators saw off the three newest visitors to the International Space Station. Image After Soyuz’s initial liftoff, the audience was ushered to a tent to continue watching the rocket’s progress into space. Image Pants belonging to Anousheh Ansari, the first privately funded female space tourist to the International Space Station. Image A monument to the Nedelin disaster of 1960, which killed dozens when a missile prototype being prepared for a test flight exploded. Image A bust of Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, in the courtyard of the cosmodrome museum. A version of this article appears in print on March 12, 2019 , Section D, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: From Russia, With Thruster: 62 Years After Sputnik, Still Looking Skyward . Order Reprints \| Today’s Paper \| Subscribe Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Markdown	[Skip to content](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#site-content)[Skip to site index](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#site-index) Search & Section Navigation Section Navigation Search [Log in](https://myaccount.nytimes.com/auth/login?response_type=cookie&client_id=vi&redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2Fsubscription%2Fonboarding-offer%3FcampaignId%3D7JFJX%26EXIT_URI%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2019%252F03%252F11%252Fscience%252Fbaikonur-soyuz-space.html&asset=masthead) [Science](https://www.nytimes.com/section/science)\\|From Russia, With Thrusters https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html - Share full article - 6 ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-verticalization/merlin_147854043_d261b920-7170-4bcf-88b2-c8f04632cb7a-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) # From Russia, With Thrusters As another Soyuz space rocket prepares to send a new batch of astronauts to the International Space Station, a photographer takes us inside the world’s oldest and largest spaceport. Credit... Supported by [SKIP ADVERTISEMENT](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/science/baikonur-soyuz-space.html#after-sponsor) - Share full article - 6 Photographs by Maxim Babenko Text by Steve Bell - March 11, 2019 [Leer en español](https://www.nytimes.com/es/2019/03/14/estacion-espacial-baikonur-soyuz/ "Read in Spanish") BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — More than a half-century ago, the launch site here became the first place to send humans into space. It is still our main route to the heavens, at least for now. As these photos suggest, time has since put a wrinkle or two or three on the massive Baikonur Cosmodrome, some 1,300 miles southeast of Moscow. It was at Baikonur that the Soviets launched Sputnik in 1957, shocking America and beginning the space race in earnest. The United States worked furiously to catch up to, and eventually surpass, the Soviet program. In 1961, Yuri Gagarin left Baikonur for a single orbit of the Earth. Today, Russians, Americans and travelers from other nations team up on missions launched from the Baikonur site, described by Vladimir V. Putin six years ago as “physically aged.” Besides all the liftoffs, Baikonur serves as a tourist draw, offering a museum, tours and even an opportunity to take a zero gravity flight. *\[**[Sign up to get reminders for space and astronomy events on your calendar](https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/science/astronomy-space-calendar.html)**.\]* On Dec. 3, the crew of Soyuz MS-11 — with Anne McClain of the United States, Oleg Kononenko of Russia and David Saint-Jacques of Canada — took off for the International Space Station. On Thursday, two more Americans and a Russian will travel there. One of the Americans on that trip, Christina Koch, plans to join Ms. McClain in the first all-female spacewalk. Since the final space shuttle flight in 2011, American astronauts have had to hitch rides on Russian ships to get to the space station. NASA’s current strategy is to use private companies — Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Boeing — to carry Americans into space. Mr. Musk, fresh from [a successful uncrewed](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/01/science/spacex-crew-dragon-launch.html) launch this month, hopes this year to end Baikonur’s status as the exclusive provider of human travel to the space station. Image![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-isshall/merlin_147853947_c901734b-bb5b-446b-881e-b32b591c6cec-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) A hall at the Baikonur cosmodrome dedicated to the International Space Station. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-mannequin/merlin_147854115_420faa52-73d9-40df-b383-e350ca7c0883-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) In the Museum of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, a mannequin used in rocket testing and a painting of Moscow. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Rockets, planes, kites and other flying objects at the cosmodrome's International Space School. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-launchcomplex/merlin_147854142_e89b599c-2e64-4894-917c-0f29330f7ceb-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) One of the cosmodrome's launch complexes.Credit...Maxim Babenko for The New York Times Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-citymuseum/12SCI-COSMODROME-citymuseum-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Kazakh culture on display in the City Museum of Baikonur. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-dance/12SCI-COSMODROME-dance-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) A performance in the City Palace of Culture of Baikonur. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool2/12SCI-COSMODROME-spaceschool2-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) At the space school, a small rocket was successfully launched. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-model/merlin_147854121_333de82c-6561-469d-a2b3-111d6a58cdaf-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) A model of Baikonur’s various launch complexes. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-buran/merlin_147854124_cfd5b038-db8c-4dac-b64d-1a209e975425-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) The Buran spacecraft, a Soviet shuttle that completed only one uncrewed flight in 1988. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-security/12SCI-COSMODROME-security-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Security at the site of the rocket, two days before lift-off. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-prelaunch2/12SCI-COSMODROME-prelaunch2-articleLarge-v2.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) The rocket being towed to the launch site. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-astronauts/12SCI-COSMODROME-astronauts-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) The crew of Soyuz MS-11, including flight engineer Ann McClain of NASA, left, and commander Oleg Kononenko of Roscosmos, en route to the launch pad. The third crew member, flight engineer David Saint-Jacques, is with the Canadian Space Agency. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-oleg/12SCI-COSMODROME-oleg-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Commander Kononenko shared a moment with the crowd before being bused to the launch pad. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Seconds into the launch. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-launch2/merlin_147853893_4a8fe9e6-97a0-40bb-b023-74aa66ec3e48-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Spectators saw off the three newest visitors to the International Space Station. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-audience/12SCI-COSMODROME-audience-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) After Soyuz’s initial liftoff, the audience was ushered to a tent to continue watching the rocket’s progress into space. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-pants/merlin_147853968_bdec7414-e688-4b12-be45-3eb0a633c212-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) Pants belonging to Anousheh Ansari, the first privately funded female space tourist to the International Space Station. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SCI-COSMODROME-memorial/merlin_147854157_87a37df8-f5be-4711-bfd0-095677db73e5-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) A monument to the Nedelin disaster of 1960, which killed dozens when a missile prototype being prepared for a test flight exploded. Image ![](https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/12/science/12SC-COSMODROME-gagarin/12SC-COSMODROME-gagarin-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale) A bust of Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, in the courtyard of the cosmodrome museum. A version of this article appears in print on March 12, 2019, Section D, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: From Russia, With Thruster: 62 Years After Sputnik, Still Looking Skyward. 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