00:00The new eco-friendly Soyuz 5 rocket, a joint Kazakh-Russian project,
00:04is set to lift off from the ground here at Baikonur
00:07from a modernized launch pad by the end of the year,
00:10signaling a new era and more frequency to these kind of launches.
00:18Kazakhstan is reimagining Baikonur Cosmodrome,
00:21which marks its 17th anniversary this year as a tourism hub between launches.
00:25Russia, which leases the site, has decommissioned and returned more than 50 facilities.
00:31Now Kazakhstan plans to build new visitor infrastructure around historic landmarks
00:36like Gagarin's launch pad, the site of humanity's first space flight,
00:40with hotels, glamping sites and even a children's camp.
00:45Join me as I explore how Kazakhstan is turning space exploration into a cultural experience.
00:52This is Modern Nomads.
00:55Bikonur Cosmodrome, set in Kazakhstan's southern steppes, is where the space race began.
01:02The first satellite launched here in 1957 was followed by the first human in 1961.
01:08Long before rockets launched, this land echoed with the legend of Korkı Tata,
01:12a mystic who created the kobız,
01:14an instrument set to bridge the earthly and cosmic realms through its sound.
01:18Legend says this is the Earth's navel, where cosmic energy flows straight into the steppe.
01:24Standing here, at Gagarin's legendary launch pad, where the first human blasted into space,
01:31I can honestly say, you do feel it.
01:34Once hidden behind the Iron Curtain, these Soviet-era relics continue to captivate.
01:39I'm walking at the Energia test complex once used to prepare the Soviet-era Energia rockets and Buran shuttle for launch.
01:47The towering structures here show the scale of Soviet ambitions in space.
01:56With over 300 sunny days a year, minimal wind, and a location near the equator,
02:02Bikonur is ideal for space launches.
02:05Earth's spin gives rockets a head start.
02:07But beyond engineering, Bikonur could also serve as a launch pad for diplomacy, innovation, and global dialogue,
02:15with parts of the site envisioned as immersive stays and cultural retreats.
02:20At this point, we're going to develop four directions of cosmic and marine tourism.
02:27The first is educational tours.
02:29The second product is related to cultural and scientific tours.
02:33The third is events.
02:34And the fourth is the actively active tours.
02:38If accommodation expands, Bikonur could host 50,000 visitors annually by 2029,
02:44a five-fold increase from today,
02:46prompting experts to imagine new ways to unlock its full tourism potential.
02:51It would be good if people could see it in their eyes at the moment of launch.
02:55It would be the same king, who gives a surprise for launching a rocket.
02:59And so they could be able to launch a new technology through command.
03:04And the vision extends beyond tourism.
03:06As Kazakhstan advances its own space program, including the Baitirek rocket complex,
03:11it envisions Bikonur as a hub for science and education.
03:15Bikonur is more than a launch site.
03:20When people have a dream to study the galaxies and new planets.
03:24So in this part, tourism causes a great interest.
03:28And this tourism gives a great motivation for children who can study this story,
03:33to inspire the progress that they have achieved in terms of the development of the cosmos.
03:38And to learn more about it and to set goals for themselves.
03:42Bikonur is more than a launch site.
03:45For creatives, thinkers, and dreamers,
03:47it's a boundary between the known and the unknown.
03:50A space to imagine, to create, to reflect.
03:52That is a kind of one-in-a-lifetime experience.
03:56This event really can make you cry.
03:58So I really recommend you.
04:00And when you go to such kind of trips, you have some expectations.
04:06And I had some expectations, but that was beyond all of them.
04:09I highly recommend a trip to Bikonur during the launch, during the normal time,
04:14just to visit the museum and the facility that Bikonur has.
04:18That really touched my soul, touched my heart.
04:21And I really enjoy it.
04:23It was such an explosion of emotions from the sight of it.
04:29And you're as if you're surrounded by some new ones.
04:32I don't know, it's so powerful, it's such a huge energy when you're there.
04:37So, with a huge enthusiasm and enthusiasm, we're back home.
04:43Kazakhstan isn't just a place between east and west.
04:45It's a bridge between earth and space.
04:48The creators of Bikonur open-air space museum say, the new era isn't eastward, it's upward.
04:54See you next time on Modern Nomads.
