Baikonur Cosmodrome
has a small museum, located right next to two small cottages, once
residences of Sergey Korolev and Yuri Gagarin. Both cottages are part of
the museum complex and have been preserved. The museum is home to a
collection of space artifacts. A restored test artifact from the Soviet
Buran programme sits next to the museum entrance. The actual vehicle
that flew a single orbital test mission in 1988 was destroyed in a
hangar collapse in 2002. It has been restored and hosts an interactive
presentation for visitors.
The museum also
houses photographs related to the cosmodrome history, including images
of all cosmonauts. Every crew of every expedition launched from Baikonur
leaves behind a signed crew photograph that is displayed behind the
glass.
Baikonur's museum
holds many objects related to Gagarin, including the ground control
panel from his flight, his uniforms, and soil from his landing site,
preserved in a silver container. One of the museum rooms also holds an
older version of Soyuz descent capsule. (source
Wikipedia)
The An-12 and Li-2 are in the
city.
