\<COLOUR 1> PAYLOAD: \<COLOUR 0> Soviet space shuttle Buran, heavy orbital payloads, space station modules, planetary probes
\<COLOUR 1> LAUNCH SITE: \<COLOUR 0> Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Central Asia
\<COLOUR 1> COUNTRY: \<COLOUR 0> USSR/CIS
\<COLOUR 1> COMMENTS: \<COLOUR 0> Also called SL-17; one of the most powerful launch vehicles ever, rivalling the Saturn V Moon rocket; first test flight on May 15, 1987; carries Buran into orbit on November 15, 1988.