28 rocket boosters to be launched from Baikonur in 2011

28 rocket boosters are to be launched from Baikonur in 2011, a third up against 2010, Novosti – Kazakhstan quoted Talgat Mussabayev, Head of KazKosmos [Kazakhstan's National Space Agency], as saying. “Last year a total of 20 rocket boosters were launched (…) 28 are planned for this year. Three of them have already been launched”, Mr. Mussabayev said during an on-line conference. Baikonur is the first and largest cosmodrome in the world. Located in Kazkahstan, it is rented out to Russia by 2050. Baikonur is closer to the Equator than other launch sites – a situation that facilitates geostationary orbit or orbits less inclined to reach the International Space Station (ISS). This privileged geographic placement enables the launch of more significant payloads. Talgat Mussabayev is a Kazakh test pilot and former cosmonaut who flew on three spaceflights. His first two spaceflights were long-duration stays aboard the Russian space station Mir. His third spaceflight was a short duration visiting mission to the International Space Station, which also carried the first paying space tourist Dennis Tito.