What Happens When the International Space Station Falls Back to Earth - Russia Will Take Over
When the International Space Station falls into the Pacific Ocean, it can be replaced by a Russian project. Such a course of events was suggested by Roskosmos. The ISS has from six to ten years of service, as we know, and by this time, Russia is going to prepare its own project, as they say, to take a place on orbit. Preparation is already underway. Moreover, the new piloted orbit ship can partly pay back. Space tourists will pay. In the next three years, the Russian part of the ISS will be supplemented with new modules. They can become part of the separate Russian station. Meanwhile, one of the segments is planned to become a VIP hotel. The guests will have the Internet, all-inclusive food, and even an opportunity to walk in the open space before going to sleep. The only unattractive thing is the trip's cost, not less than $ 100 million for a week. But no one else has offered anything like this so far.
Yevgeny Tishkovets is in our studio.
- Yevgeny, welcome!
- Good evening, Alexei.
- Will there be clients?
- Of course. There's also a sponsor already. Considering the fact that in our today's orbital station, in comparison to the international one, all the modules can be changed in open space,
To be more precise, the ISS is also assembled like a construction set. But in comparison to it, in today's Russian orbital station, all the modules can be changed in space if necessary. Here is one of them, the multipurpose functional module Nauka (Science). It will work as part of the ISS, too, the launch is planned for this December. It will bring more space to the ISS. It has room for scientific equipment, new workplaces, new cabins for the crew, and even a new restroom.
In the next two years, two more modules will be launched. They will help to update the ISS and then become the base for the Russian orbital station. This is the node Prichal (Wharf). It's the center of the puzzle that has six docking compartments. Its lifespan is not less than 30 years. The new orbital station will be provided with energy by the scientific energy module with the new generation solar panels.
Ivan Moiseyev, the Cosmos Politics Institute Head: "This orbital station isn't big, it's smaller than the old Mir station. Nevertheless, it'll work. Our first stations were based on one node block of the same type. Here, there will be two such main blocks. It can be assembled like a LEGO construction set. Of course, it's easier to say it than to do, but it's possible."
Now, the ISS includes 14 main modules. Five of them are Russian. But three of them already completed their service, and every year, after cosmonauts and the telemetry probing check the equipment, conclusions on the possibility of their use are issued. The long exploitation term is not the only obstacle to using the Russian ISS segment as an independent station after 2024.
Ivan Moiseyev: "The station's lifespan is determined by the lifespan of the functional load module Zarya (Dawn). We made it, but it was an American order, so it's American. Though, it is in our segment. As this is the oldest module, it performs very important functions on directing the station's movement and its orbit. and the station's existence depends on it. It has its lifespan. It will end in 2024".
The possibility of using inflatable and transformable modules in the Russian orbital station is being considered. One of such modules made in the US is docked to the ISS. But in fact, it's just an experiment. Cosmonauts visit it four times a year for research purposes. Russian engineers developed and obtained a patent for their own unique variant of a transformable module. Its main advantage is the use of a soft fabric encasement. It's spread on orbit, and its volume increases by several times. At the same time, the encasement has a flexible protection from space junk. Just imagine, it can withstand the impact of metal particles weighing several dozens of grams, flying with a speed of over 2,500 thousand meters per second.
A new module can appear in the Russian space station. Its goal will be earning money on space tourists. The RKK Energiya says they'll build the module according to an existing project, which will be a lot cheaper. No additional money will be needed for the launch and maintenance. They already have a potential commercial partner. The project will pay back in approximately seven years and a half.
- Thank you. Yevgeny Tishkovets has told us about the life on orbit.