Credit: NASA
There was a lot of discussion on Sunday about the impact of the loss of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on the International Space Station. NASA officials said the ISS crew was in no danger from a supply standpoint, and they said they would stick to the existing schedule for crew rotation but might change the cargo manifest.
Roscosmos head Vladimir Popovkin, GKAU head Yuri Alexeev, and Kazkosmos head Talgat Musabayev meet in Yalta. (Credit: Kazkosmos)
Yalta, Ukraine (Kazkosmos PR) — In the sidelines of the meeting in Yalta representatives of executive authorities of CIS member states on cooperation in the space sector held a trilateral meeting of heads of space agencies of Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine.
Chairman of the National Space Agency of Kazakhstan Talgat Musabayev, the head of Roscosmos, Vladimir Popovkin, and chairman of the National Space Agency of Ukraine (GKAU) Yuri Alexeev after a discussion of issues of cooperation and the prospects for the implementation of the project at the Baikonur Cosmodrome Baiterek on the basis of the launch vehicle (LV) Zenit signed a joint protocol.
Another fine day for Russia’s space program. A Proton crashes with three GLONASS satellites.
From Roscosmos:
An emergency commission led by Deputy Head of Roscosmos A.P.Lopatina has been created and begun its work.
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
Russian Ruler for Life Vladimir Putin and Kazakhstan’s only president ever, Nursultan Nazarbayev, have directed the heads of their respective space agencies to develop a “comprehensive bilateral agreement governing the joint use of Baikonur, the development of its scientific and technological capacity, joint missile systems, training and participation of Kazakhstani specialists in launch services,” the KAZINFORM news agency reports.
The decision was announced last week during Putin’s official state visit to Almaty, a trip that corresponded with a gathering of the space agencies of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The commonwealth is a loose association of Russia, Kazakhstan and eight other former Soviet republics.
Kazkosmos Chairman Talgat Musabayev
Officials celebrated the fifth birthday of Kazakhstan’s space agency, Kazkosmos, on Tuesday as they looked ahead to building a full-fledged space industry that would serve as a key high-tech sector for the nation. A key part of this effort is cooperating with foreign space powers, including Europe, and training a new generation of aerospace workers abroad.
When the Soviet Union broke up 20 years ago, Kazakhstan inherited control of the Baikonur Cosmodrome. However, the country lacked a space agency and much in the way of a domestic space industrial sector. There were few trained engineers and technicians, a problem the nation is still addressing today.
KAZKOSMOS PR — In the period from Nov. 11 to 17, a Kazkosmos delegation headed by Chairman Talgat Musabayev is participating in the “Dubai Air Show 2011” being held in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). As part of “Dubai Air Show 2011”, the Kazkosmos delegation plans to meet with representatives of the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology of the United Arab Emirates to discuss cooperation in space activities. At the […]
The Angara rocket family. (Credit: Allocer)
The Kazakh and Russian space agencies have signed an agreement to move forward with the long-delayed construction of the Baiterek launch complex at Baikonur, the official state news agency Kazinform reports. The launch pad will host Russia’s new Angara family of rockets.
Soyuz rocket
In looking through Kazkosmos’ plans for 2010-15, I discovered what it costs Russia to maintain its presence at the Kazakhstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome:
Based on the above is only logical that Russia considers beneficial to pay an annual $115 million dollars for the lease of the Baikonur Cosmodrome and invest annually $ 100 million to maintain its facilities. From the perspective of Kazakhstan receive annual rental fee is none other than the implementation of its unique competitive advantage. During the lease period the country’s budget has more than $1.8 billion U.S. dollars.
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev
Kazkosmos officials are getting behind the bid of Kazakhstan President-for-Life Nursultan Nazarbayev for another term running the Central Asian republic where the Baikonur Cosmodrome is located. The vote will take place on April 3.
The local ÒšazÒ“arysh branch of Nazarbayev’s People’s Democratic Party (NDP or Nur Otan) recently held a meeting at ÐŒazaÑœstan Єarysh Sapary, a joint stock company run by Kazkosmos. Space agency officials were effusive in their praise for the president, who has held power since 1991. Kazkosmos PAO reports:
“We believe that President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan is a true pioneer in space exploration, because it was he who paved the road to space for Kazakhstan. It concerns the fate of the Baikonur cosmodrome, and the flight of the first Kazakh cosmonaut Toktar Aubakirov, and all three of my space flight, as well as today’s large-scale projects Kazkosmos. We have always felt the support of the President of the country,” said Kazkosmos Chairman Talgat Musabayev, who is a member of the Nur Otan Political Council.
Soyuz rocket
For more than 50 years, thousands of rockets have thundered from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, sending a series of historic firsts in space: satellite (Sputnik), human (Yuri Gagarin), space station (Salyut 1), lunar probes and more Hundreds of cosmonauts have lifted off from the cosmodrome and landed to hero’s welcomes on the Kazakh steppes since 1961.
But in all time, and in all those flights, how many ethnic Kazakhs have ventured out into humanity’s final frontier?
One. Un. Uno. Ein. Один.
And that’s is not sitting very well with the nation’s first cosmic voyager, Tokhtar Aubakirov: (more…)
