During the Cold War, the Soviet Union and the United States were bitter rivals in the so-called “space race.” Now the U.S. and Russia are cooperating on a number of important projects in space, such as the Международная космическая станция, or International Space Station, abbreviated in Russian as МКС. You read a short history of space exploration on page 232 of your textbook. To learn more about the Russian space program, go to the site of the Российское Авиационно-Космическое Агенство, or Russian Aviation and Space Agency, a federal agency referred to as Росавиакосмос for short:

http://www.rosaviakosmos.ru

1			The main launch facility for Russian rockets is the космодром Байконур, the largest such facility in the world. Click on the “Байконур” link on the left-hand side of the Росавиакосмос home page. At the top of the Байконур page you'll find a map. • В какой стране находится космодром Байконур? • Как Вы думаете, почему главный космодром России находится за рубежом (abroad)? Что произошло? (What happened?)
2			Now scroll down the Байконур page until you reach the history of the facility. Scan the first and third paragraphs for the following information: • Когда был открыт космодром? • How big is the facility? Hint: the area that something covers or occupies in Russian is referred to as "площадь." • The text gives the facility's dimensions in kilometers. How many miles does this work out to? Hint: the word for mile is "миля."
3			Click the "back" button on your server to return to the Росавиакосмос home page. Now click the "Исторический календарь" link on the left-hand side of the page. What historic events occurred on the following dates? Hint: Choose the month by clicking on the left button, then click the "календарь" button to choose the day. • 20 июля 1969? • 17 июля 1975? • 23 марта 2001?
4			The major collaborative space project of our day is the Международная космическая станция, a $95 billion project that involves 16 nations and five space agencies. An event without precedent in the history of space travel occurred on the station from April 28 to May 6, 2001. For your first clue, open the following page: http://www.rosaviakosmos.ru/cp1251/news/2001/280401.htm Scan the brief descriptions of each cosmonaut (don't worry about all the abbreviations). Do you notice anything unusual?
5			For the rest of the story, take a look at this feature story from a Russian online magazine: http://www.port-folio.org/part53.htm Scan the three paragraphs under the heading "Краткая справка," using your dictionary sparingly. • Why was Dennis Tito's trip into space so unusual? What aspect of his story surprised you the most?

А ЧТО ДАЛЬШЕ?

6			The Росавиакосмос site features a wealth of photographs. To see them, click on the “Фото. Видео” link on the agency's home page. Perhaps the most spectacular are those featuring ‘космонавты’ and ‘астронавты’ (as U.S. astronauts are often called). To find these, click on the link for the “Программа пилотируемых полетов” (Manned Space Flight Program). Click on individual photographs to enlarge them and see an explanatory caption. An excellent source of information about the Международная космическая станция is the website of Ракетно-космическая корпорация «Энергия», the company that manufactures cargo ships and manned capsules crucial to the project. http://www.energia.ru/energia/iss/iss-history.html