Uploaded January 2023 | Updated September 2026, 16 hours ago
I returned to explore the abandoned Soviet-era Buran space shuttles in the middle of the Kazakhstan desert. The adventure of a lifetime – a second time.
It's an 80km (50 mile) hike across unforgiving terrain, mostly undercover of the night. The adventure requires crossing into Russian territory and evading armed Russian military patrols. And, this time, we were exposed to sub-zero temperatures.
This video includes the first-ever 4K complete tour around the space shuttles. See the Ptichka orbiter – 95% complete for space flight – up close like never before. It's an incredible work of engineering to behold.
S O C I A L M E D I A
Instagram ⇢ instagram.com/chrisluckhardt
TikTok ⇢ tiktok.com/@chrisluckhardt
A B O U T
Past the Present Future is a film series by globally recognized photographer Chris Luckhardt. The series views the PAST through a lens in the PRESENT with an eye to FUTURE development.
B I O G R A P H Y
Chris Luckhardt has documented and photographed some of the most iconic and viral images of abandoned places around the world. He was among the first photographers to publish photos in the press from legendary abandoned places like Hashima Island, Nara Dreamland, Michigan Central Station, and Six Flags New Orleans. His body of work has led to interviews and collaborations with The White House, Netflix, Ford, GQ China, ABC News, Good Morning America, Scholastic Canada, Yahoo Japan, and many more. In 2016, the Obama administration invited Chris to photograph a private citizen "haunted" tour of The White House.
A D D I T I O N A L F O O T A G E
Footage from August 1995 courtesy of Buran.ru.
#Space #Soviet #SpaceShuttle #Buran #Abandoned #AbandonedPlaces #NASA #SpaceX #PastThePresentFuture #ChrisLuckhardt #Urbex #UrbanExploration
I returned to explore the abandoned Soviet-era Buran space shuttles in the middle of the Kazakhstan desert. The adventure of a lifetime – a second time.
It's an 80km (50 mile) hike across unforgiving terrain, mostly undercover of the night. The adventure requires crossing into Russian territory and evading armed Russian military patrols. And, this time, we were exposed to sub-zero temperatures.
This video includes the first-ever 4K complete tour around the space shuttles. See the Ptichka orbiter – 95% complete for space flight – up close like never before. It's an incredible work of engineering to behold.
S O C I A L M E D I A
Instagram ⇢ instagram.com/chrisluckhardt
TikTok ⇢ tiktok.com/@chrisluckhardt
A B O U T
Past the Present Future is a film series by globally recognized photographer Chris Luckhardt. The series views the PAST through a lens in the PRESENT with an eye to FUTURE development.
B I O G R A P H Y
Chris Luckhardt has documented and photographed some of the most iconic and viral images of abandoned places around the world. He was among the first photographers to publish photos in the press from legendary abandoned places like Hashima Island, Nara Dreamland, Michigan Central Station, and Six Flags New Orleans. His body of work has led to interviews and collaborations with The White House, Netflix, Ford, GQ China, ABC News, Good Morning America, Scholastic Canada, Yahoo Japan, and many more. In 2016, the Obama administration invited Chris to photograph a private citizen "haunted" tour of The White House.
A D D I T I O N A L F O O T A G E
Footage from August 1995 courtesy of Buran.ru.
#Space #Soviet #SpaceShuttle #Buran #Abandoned #AbandonedPlaces #NASA #SpaceX #PastThePresentFuture #ChrisLuckhardt #Urbex #UrbanExploration
