Baikonur Cosmodrome in the remote desert steppes of Kazakhstan is one of the most important sites in the history of space travel. During the Soviet era, the first man-made satellite, "Sputnik 1," took off from there in 1957, and it was also the place where the first man in space, Yury Gagarin, blasted into orbit in 1961. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Baikonur has been used to launch missions to the International Space Station. Russia has also continued to operate space missions from Baikonur under the terms of an agreement with Astana, even though this cooperation is now under threat due to a dispute between Kazakhstan and Russia over the rent paid for the use of the facility. (12 PHOTOS)
