Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 31

Baikonur Site 31, also known as Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan, is a launch site used by derivatives of the R-7 Semyorka missile. Since Roscosmos' change from flying crew on the Soyuz-FG to the Soyuz-2 launch vehicle for crewed flights in 2020, it has served as the primary launch site for Soyuz flights to the International Space Station. It took over from Site 1/5 (Gagarin's Start) since it failed to receive funding to modernize it for the slightly larger Soyuz-2 rocket.

Before that, it only saw a handful of crewed flights when Site 1/5 was unavailable (Soyuz TMA-06M, Soyuz TMA-15M, Soyuz MS-02).

It was first used on 14 January 1961, for an R-7A ICBM test mission. As of 2023 it is currently used for Soyuz-2 launches. In the 1970s and early 1980s, several crewed missions were launched from the site.

See also

• Gagarin's Start (Baikonur Site 1)

References

• "Baikonur LC31". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on 4 September 2003.

Further reading

• J. K. Golovanov, "Korolev: Facts and myths", Nauka, 1994, ISBN 5-02-000822-2;
• "Rockets and people" – B. E. Chertok, M: "mechanical engineering", 1999 ISBN 5-217-02942-0 (in Russian);
• «A breakthrough in space» - Konstantin Vasilyevich Gerchik, M: LLC "Veles", 1994 - ISBN 5-87955-001-X;
• "Testing of rocket and space technology - the business of my life" Events and facts - A.I. Ostashev, Korolyov, 2001 [1];
• "Baikonur. Korolev. Yangel" - M. I. Kuznetsk, Voronezh: IPF "Voronezh", 1997, ISBN 5-89981-117-X;
• "Look back and look ahead. Notes of a military engineer" - Rjazhsky A. A., 2004, SC. first, the publishing house of the "Heroes of the Fatherland" ISBN 5-91017-018-X.
• "Rocket and space feat Baikonur" - Vladimir Порошков, the "Patriot" publishers 2007. ISBN 5-7030-0969-3
• "Unknown Baikonur" - edited by B. I. Posysaeva, M.: "globe", 2001. ISBN 5-8155-0051-8

1. Baikonur Cosmodrome
2. Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 200
3. Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 110
4. Gagarin's Start
5. Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 45
6. Baikonur
7. Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 41
8. Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 109
9. Plesetsk Cosmodrome
10. Soyuz MS-25
11. Soyuz MS-26
12. Soyuz MS-24
13. IRS-1A
14. Plesetsk Cosmodrome Site 133
15. Kanopus-V-IK
16. IRS-1C
17. Soyuz MS-29
18. SumbandilaSat
19. Soyuz MS-22
20. Soyuz MS-28