Kapustin Yar, Military spaceport in Znamensk, Russia
Kapustin Yar is a military launch facility in Astrakhan Oblast, located southeast of Saratov across a wide steppe landscape. The complex includes several separate launch pads and storage areas connected by a network of paved roads.
The Soviet government selected this remote steppe region in 1946 as a testing ground for captured German rocket technology after World War II. The first successful launches in October 1947 paved the way for the Soviet space program and decades of military missile tests.
The facility earned recognition as the Russian equivalent of Area 51, with numerous reported unidentified flying object sightings during Soviet military experiments.
The entire facility remains closed to the public and is subject to strict military control, making any visit or approach impossible. The nearest publicly accessible area is in the town of Znamensk, which is also subject to entry restrictions.
Between 1951 and 1960, this facility sent 48 dogs into space on experimental flights, with Dezik and Gypsy being the first in July 1951. Most of these animals returned to Earth alive, providing crucial medical data about the effects of weightlessness on living beings.
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