Ghosts of the USSR: Eerie photographs show Soviet-era space shuttles left to rust in an abandoned desert hangar in Kazakhstan

May 9, 2017 8:18 AM

HT92RPA

Views

77980

Likes

1012

Dislikes

32

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4473172/Eerie-photographs-Soviet-era-space-shuttles.html

Russia lol,

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 2

Why isn't this in a museum? Maybe it shine's a light on embarrassingly low tech for USSR in it's era? I don't care. It's historic and cool!

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

I really thought by now we would have settlements on the Moon and Mars...instead we just have a thumb up Uranus

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Please don't click the daily mail links. They incite racial hatred in the UK

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

That's cool... ...and a bit sad

9 years ago | Likes 69 Dislikes 0

Yes, sad. The Soviet space program conducted a wealth of experiments that gave us clues to so much, incl. the first robots on another planet

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

This is that destiny map, right?

9 years ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

It's like a post apocalyptic version of Nasa.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

I feel like there are some useable parts that can possibly be helpful to current space programs.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

#1 reminds me of a Space Moose character

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Finders keepers.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

This is your chance to kickstart your kerbal program!

9 years ago | Likes 148 Dislikes 0

I believe they were destroyed when the hanger collapsed.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

v From Russia with Love

9 years ago | Likes 23 Dislikes 0

what's this from?

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

USSR Buran Space Orbiter.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Hell yeah

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Why not melt down the pieces and reuse?

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

Do you know how much effort that would be in the middle of nowhere? Not worth it.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 1

Built for Polan, never of used

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

I always find pictures like this sad - when you think of all the time, money and skill that went into this project

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

*In the Arms of an Angel plays*

9 years ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 1

That song is even more depressing when you figure out what it's actually about.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

I wish I could've seen earth from space just once before being put here.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Looks like it's made of Lego bricks

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Don't mind me, just looking for spinmetal

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

I wish I could find something awesome like this. I wouldn't share it with anyone

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Amazing Paintball battleground. :O

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Did the shuttles ever fly?, would be cool to know if they worked.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Yes, very well. Once. A fully automated unmanned flight that worked flawlessly. Then 1989 happened. USSR gone, space program gone.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

That's insane, and it's a real shame they're just left to rot if that's the case.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Yeah, what an unbelievable waste of effort, ingenuity and money. Really sad.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Still better than North Korea's missile program

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Considering it worked flawlessly, yes.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Always upvote buran.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Looks just like everything in the former USSR dirty, unmaintained and falling apart

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

You just described modern civilization

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 1

this is common knowledge for anyone that plays destiny

9 years ago | Likes 8 Dislikes 3

I saw cosmodrome and immediately started looking for someone who mentioned destiny. Hello guardian.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

I did the same thing.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Admittedly I've been robbed of the light. Here's hoping destiny 2 restores it.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

I've been giving my light a break for a while. Totally understand

9 years ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 0

It would provide an excellent lair for a James Bond villain.

9 years ago | Likes 16 Dislikes 0

he will call it the Vlad Pad

9 years ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

Like this? https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/25483/image-w1280.jpg?1445870985 From James Bond - Moonraker? :D

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

I recognized that, not from the movie, but from the game. Still able to run it on an emulator, though it runs a tad fast, very hard to win.

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Hell yeah!

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Didn't the building collapse some time back, or is my memory wonky?

9 years ago | Likes 34 Dislikes 0

The hangar containing the flight tested Buran shuttle collapsed. However, they made more than one and these two in the pics still exist.

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

One is only a mock-up used for equipment mating tests. The other is OK 1.02 "Ptichka". It was 97% finished when work was abandoned.

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

R u from future.?

9 years ago | Likes 29 Dislikes 0

They made more than one Buran shuttle. The two in this hanger from the pics are still intact.

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

That sucks

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

Yeah, but our shuttle was a really bad design. Russians copied it, then realized that. Not really worth anything.

9 years ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

Holy cow it did all that unmanned? In 1988??

9 years ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

They have had unmanned flights in the 60s

9 years ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

In the 50s too. Sputnik-1 was in 1957.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

I meant unmanned flights with ships that could take people, and they did complex reentry too.

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

The shuttle concept was not sustainable and the Russians understood that first because their money was tighter.

9 years ago | Likes 8 Dislikes 3

I don't think that was the reason. Space exploration just isn't exactly a priority for a country that just lost half of it's economy.

9 years ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 0

Which half was that?

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

The program was cancelled as a result of the dissolution of the USSR. Chaos + no priority anymore + no funding anymore = abandoned.

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

Right, I know that, which half of it's economy did the USSR lose?

9 years ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

What do you mean which half? It lost several entire countries.

9 years ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0