The Baikonur Cosmodrome is the main Soviet launch centre. It is sometimes known as the Tyuratam launch site because it is sited about 50 km from this town: the city of Baikonur lies nearly 400 km away! A new 'science city' called Leninsk was built in the mid-1950s to house personnel working at the space centre. Baikonur has been the site of all major Soviet launches, from Sputnik 1 in 1957 to the current Soyuz launches to space station Mir. It is located in a remote desert region, which has a typically extreme continental climate - very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. Baikonur is a sprawling facility, covering an area over 130 km long and 90 km across: railway lines link the various launch complexes. Major complexes include those of the launch vehicle Proton, the heavy-lift launch vehicle Energia, the Soviet space shuttle Buran, and the Soyuz and Progress ferry craft. Each complex includes one or more launch pads and assembly buildings, in which the launch vehicles and spacecraft are prepared. In contrast to US practice, all Soviet launch vehicles are assembled and transported horizontally, and erected vertically on the pad.
