Decided! Russian Space Director: Exit the International Space Station after 2024! NASA: Not notified
According to the Russian Satellite News Agency, on the evening of July 26, local time, Yury Ivanovich Borisov, the new director of the Russian Space Agency (RKA), has decided to withdraw from the international space after 2024. space station. In the current space, there are two space stations in operation, one is the International Space Station, and the other is the Chinese Space Station. There are astronauts stationed on both space stations. The former has 7 people and the latter has 3 people (Shenzhou 14th). astronaut crew). But the two space stations are very different in terms of newness. The International Space Station is in disrepair, while the Chinese Space Station is under construction. In 1998, under the joint leadership of the United States and the Russian Space Agency, the Russian Space Agency sent the Dawning functional cargo capsule into space, thus kicking off the construction of the International Space Station. After years of construction, the International Space Station has become the largest manned space station in human history. It can accommodate 7 astronauts in orbit for a long time, and can also allow up to 13 astronauts to coexist briefly. The International Space Station is not only the largest space station, but also the most expensive single piece of man-made object, with a total cost of up to $150 billion, which would allow the construction of 15 of the most expensive space telescopes, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). In addition, the International Space Station requires up to $3.1 billion in annual operating costs. With the longer and longer operating years, many equipment and modules on the International Space Station have inevitably deteriorated. As the earliest module to go to space, Dawn has already had many cracks before. In the cabin where the astronauts live, there have also been air leaks. Although the International Space Station can continue to operate after repairs, it cannot reverse the fate of being scrapped. Over time, the cracks in the cabin became more and more likely to connect into a large piece, causing the space station to collapse. Roscosmos has previously warned that at least 80 percent of the flight systems on the International Space Station are overdue. In fact, the design life of the International Space Station is only 15 years, which expired as early as 2013. After negotiation, the operation time was further extended to 2024. NASA this year has extended the ISS until 2030. Dmitry Rogozin, the former director of Roscosmos, made a big news before leaving office. Roscosmos has decided when to withdraw from the International Space Station. The time is not 2030 as NASA hopes, but before. Said 2024. At the time, NASA administrator Bill Nelson also confidently expressed confidence that Roscosmos would continue to cooperate on the International Space Station until the 2030 deadline. But now, the new Russian space director has once again confirmed that Roscosmos will officially withdraw from the International Space Station after 2024. Rogozin has previously pointed out that if Roscosmos no longer participates in the International Space Station project, then the International Space Station will soon face paralysis. Roscosmos controls the power unit of the International Space Station, and the orbit change of the space station depends on the Russian module. Whether it is to avoid falling back into the Earth's atmosphere, to avoid space debris, or to quickly dock and return the spacecraft, the International Space Station must be re-orbited, and this requires the use of Roscosmos' Progress cargo spacecraft, which are Carry the propellant into space, and generate power by starting the rocket engine, thereby driving the space station to change orbit. Regarding Russia's decision to withdraw from the International Space Station after 2024, Robyn Gatens, director of NASA's International Space Station Program, said that the United States has not yet received an official statement from Russia. NASA wants Roscosmos not to end the partnership and expects ISS cooperation to continue into the late 20s. But this time, Roscosmos seems to have "decided". For the next step, Borisov said that Roscosmos will build its own space station. According to Vladimir Solovyov, chief designer of Roscosmos' manned spaceflight program, the construction of the Russian ROSS space station is expected to start in 2028. If so, Roscosmos will have a few years without a space station. This year, the construction of the Chinese space station will be completed. After that, foreign astronauts will visit our space station. So, will Russian astronauts come to our space station in the next few years? Previously, Russian astronauts have indicated that they are willing to participate in the Chinese space station project if given the opportunity. Rogozin also said that it is possible to explore the construction of new modules and capsules on the Chinese space station and to cooperate in the field of manned spaceflight.