Kazakh girls watch as the Russian Soyuz TMA-15 rocket carrying Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Frank De Winne of Belgium and Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko readies for take-off from the Baikonur cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan on May 27, 2009. Three astronauts, from Canada, Belgium and Russia, blasted off for the International Space Station in a landmark mission that will double its crew to six for the first time. (Photo by Dmitry Kostyukov/AFP Photo)

In one of the planet’s most desolate and harsh terrains, the Altai Mountains which run from Siberia in Russia down to Mongolia’s Gobi Desert, hunting with eagles is currently only practiced by a handful of Kyrgyz and Kazakhs. This form of falconry, the practice of hunting with the aid of birds of prey, can be traced back as far as 4,000 years in Central Asia. Here: after a successful hunt, a proud hunter rewards his eagle by feeding it the lungs of the prey, which is considered the most highly prized part of the animal. (Photo by Tariq Zaidi/The Washington Post)

A woman walks under snowfall in front of a Soyuz rocket installed as a monument in Baikonur city, near the Russian leased Kazakh Baikonur cosmodrome on December 5, 2021. Space tourists Yusaku Maezawa and his assistant Yozo Hirano, led by Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin, will take part in a mission on the Soyuz MS-20 spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) scheduled for December 8, 2021. (Photo by Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP Photo)

These stunning photographs show the changing face of a majestic centuries old Kazakh pastime tradition that still lives in the lands of mongolia – eagle hunters. Photo: 13 year old Irka Bolen with his eagle. Tradition wise, when a boy turns 13, then are strong enough to hold the weight of a fully grown eagle. (Photo by Asher Svidensky/Caters News)

With their wings at full length, these beautiful golden eagles soar through the skies in a glorious training session to hunt their prey. Others sit on the arms of their owners and trainers. Batzaya Choijiljav, 41, from Mongolia has taken these magnificent pictures at the annual traditional Kazakhs festival, October 2015. (Photo by Batzaya Choijiljav/Caters News)

A model is reflected in a mirror as she applies make up backstage during Kazakhstan Fashion Week in Almaty, Kazakhstan, April 19, 2016. (Photo by Shamil Zhumatov/Reuters)

The Soyuz TMA-11M capsule with the International Space Station (ISS) crew members Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin and U.S. astronaut Rick Mastracchio lands south-east of the town of Dzhezkazgan in central Kazakhstan, May 14, 2014. The first Japanese to command a space mission and crewmates from the United States and Russia landed safely in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, wrapping up a 188-day stay aboard the International Space Station. (Photo by Dmitry Lovetsky/Reuters)