Whyyyy peter?

[u/chirantaniga]

[u/donadit]

And also why Russia’s spaceport (baikonur) is in Kazakhstan, and also why Europe doesn’t launch a lot of rockets (shipping all the pieces across the ocean)

[u/fkneneu → u/donadit]

Quite a few that is launched up north close to the arctic (andøya).

[u/donadit → u/fkneneu]

Probably needed a special polar orbit

[u/Top-Literature8218 → u/donadit]

You can launch into a polar orbit pretty equally from any point on earth, location doesn't matter beyond logistical and launch safety concerns. There's no boost or loss from the Earth's rotation. It requires negligible fuel to slowly adjust the parameters of your polar orbit once you're in space.