Russia has decided to remain partner of space mission with US and other European countries by not leaving ISS till 2028. Following a warning to leave the International Space Station (ISS) platform by 2024, Russia has now postponed the plan until at least 2028.
Last year, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, Russian space officials said the nation would leave the ISS partnership sometime after 2024, so it could focus on building its own outpost in low Earth orbit.
Roscosmos chief Yury Borisov briefed Russian President Vladimir Putin in comments released by the Kremlin.
After months of suspense, it is confirmed that ISS will not have a Russian cosmonaut from 2024.
3 reason why Russia warning to leave ISS
There are several potential reason for Russia’s threat to leave the space programme:
- The Kremlin’s warning was perceived as an retaliation against the US sanctions impose wake of the invasion of Ukraine.
- Russia intends to launch a space station of its own. It is preparing to construct its own space station and put it into orbit by 2030.
- The Cold War-era space competition is starting up once more. Roscosmos is getting ready to take the helm of its own space missions and collaborate with other nations on them. Russia and China declared they will collaborate in lunar space mission.
ISS is hailed as an epitome of cooperation between the Russia and the US post-cold war. Russia and United States have shown a significant collaboration at ISS science exploration missions. The decision of Kremlin leaving the ISS sets the new low in its relation with Washington.
In a statement, Nasa confirmed, “The United States, Japan, Canada, and the participating countries of ESA (European Space Agency) have confirmed they will support continued space station operations through 2030 and Russia has confirmed it will support continued station operations through 2028.”
“Extending our time aboard this amazing platform allows us to reap the benefits of more than two decades of experiments and technology demonstrations, as well as continue to materialize even greater discovery to come.” Robyn Gatens, director of the ISS division at NASA said.
International Space Station
The International Space Station has been visited by 266 people from 20 countries since its inauguration in 1998. The space station is a research platform where crew members conduct experiments across different disciplines and demonstrate technology that would be impossible to perform on Earth.
“Now, in its third decade of operations, the station is in the decade of results when the platform can maximize its scientific return,” agency officials said this. “Results are compounding, new benefits are materializing, and innovative research and technology demonstrations are building on previous work.”
Though the ISS still has considerable life left in it, NASA is already preparing to pass the baton in low Earth orbit (LEO).
