The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) has announced that it will continue to participate in the work of the International Space Station (ISS) until 2024. Then Russia is planning to create its own station based on Russian modules.
The decision was taken on Feb. 24 at a meeting of the Scientific and Technical Council, which reviewed plans for Russian manned space flight for the period up to 2030 and beyond.
In addition to creating its own station, Roscosmos plans to begin exploration of the Moon by sending unmanned spacecraft into lunar orbit and making surface landings. The first manned flight is scheduled for 2030.
The ISS is an international project involving 15 countries (in addition to Russia and the United States, they are: Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, France, Switzerland, Sweden, and Japan). Russia launched the first section of the station - the Zarya module - into orbit on Nov. 20, 1998.
NASA has made no official comment on the Roscomos announcement of plans to create a Russian station based on the ISS modules, though the U.S. space agency welcomed the decision to extend work on the ISS until 2024, reported Sputnik.
Since 2014, NASA has been gradually reducing cooperation with Roscosmos, supporting only projects related to the operation of the ISS.
This is not only because the station is made up of both Russian and American modules, but also because for now the U.S. is only able to send their astronauts to the ISS via Russian Soyuz rockets. NASA hopes that private companies (SpaceX and Boeing) will be able to provide the U.S. with its own spacecraft by 2017.
The Russian segment of the ISS consists of five modules: a functional and cargo unit, a life-support module, two docking sections and a research module.
Several new modules are scheduled for launch in the next two years: a multi-purpose laboratory module, an additional junction module, then a science and energy module.
KosmoKurs thinks it will be able to offer safe space flights at a low cost.
The British singer on her upcoming trip to the International Space Station.
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