Suggested Searches

1 min read

Preflight Flower

Three bright yellow tulips with green leaves that have rippling edges sprouts out of the brown dirt in the foreground. In the distance is a Soyuz rocket on the launch pad.
NASA/Joel Kowsky

A NASA photographer took this picture of a flower called Borshchov’s tulip near the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on April 7, 2025, ahead of NASA astronaut Jonny Kim and cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky launching to the International Space Station. The flower is unique to Kazakhstan, attracting many to study and appreciate its beauty.

Image credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky