Russia will leave the International Space Station after 2024 and focus on building its own outpost in orbit, the country’s new space chief said on Tuesday amid high tensions between Moscow and the West over fighting in Ukraine. The announcement, while not unexpected, casts doubt on the future of the 24-year-old space station, with experts saying it would be extremely difficult — a “nightmare,” by all accounts — to continue operating without the Russians. NASA and its partners hoped to keep it running until 2030. “The decision to leave the station after 2024 has been made,” Yuri Borisov, appointed this month to head Russia’s Roscosmos space agency, said during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. He added: “I think by that time we will begin to form a Russian station in orbit.” The space station has long been a symbol of post-Cold War international teamwork in the name of science, but is now one of the last areas of cooperation between the US and the Kremlin. NASA had no immediate comment. Mr Borisov’s statement confirmed earlier statements by Russian space officials about Moscow’s intention to abandon the space station after 2024 when current international arrangements for its operation expire. Russian officials have long spoken of their desire to launch the country’s own space station, and have complained that the aging International Space Station’s wear and tear poses safety risks and could make it difficult to extend its life. Cost may also be a factor: With Elon Musk’s company SpaceX now flying NASA astronauts to and from the space station, the Russian space agency has lost an important source of income. For years, NASA paid tens of millions of dollars per seat for rides to and from the station on Russian Soyuz rockets. The Russian announcement is sure to prompt speculation that it is part of Moscow’s maneuvering to win relief from Western sanctions over the conflict in Ukraine. Mr Borisov’s predecessor, Dmitry Rogozin, said last month that Moscow could only join negotiations on a possible expansion of the station’s operations if the US lifted its sanctions against Russian space industries. The space station is jointly managed by Russia, the US, Europe, Japan and Canada. The first piece was launched in 1998 and the outpost has been continuously inhabited for nearly 22 years. It is used to conduct scientific research in zero gravity and test technology for future trips to the moon and Mars. It usually has a crew of seven, who spend months at a time on the station as it orbits about 420 kilometers above Earth. Three Russians, three Americans and an Italian are now on board. The US$100 billion complex, which is about the size of a football field, consists of two main sections, one run by Russia, the other by the US and other countries. It was not immediately clear what would need to be done on the Russian side of the complex to continue safely operating the space station once Moscow withdraws. Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who spent 340 straight days on the International Space Station in 2015 and 2016, said the Russian statement “could just be more sinister,” noting that “after 2024” is vague and vague. . “I think Russia will stay as long as it can afford, since without the ISS it has no human spaceflight program,” he said. “Working with the West also shows some legitimacy to other, non-aligned nations and their own people, which Putin needs as the war in Ukraine has damaged his credibility.” Former Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield tweeted in reaction to the announcement: “Remember Russia’s best game is chess.” Mr Kelly said the design of the station would make it difficult but not impossible for other nations to operate it if Russia withdrew. Jordan Beam, a historian of science, technology and medicine at the University of Chicago, said the Russian statement “doesn’t bode well for the future of the ISS,” adding that it “creates a constellation of uncertainties about maintaining the station that I don’t have easy answers.” “What will ‘leaving’ look like?” asked. “Will the last cosmonauts simply detach a Soyuz and return to Earth, leaving the Russian-made units attached? Will they deactivate them before they leave? Should NASA and its international partners negotiate to acquire and continue to use them? Can these units be sustained even without Russian expertise?’ Mr Bimm said it was theoretically possible to keep the station running after the Russians bailed out, but “in practice it could be a nightmare depending on how badly Russia wanted to make it for NASA and the rest of its partners”. . If the station’s Russian components became detached or malfunctioned, the most immediate problem would be how to periodically boost the assembly to maintain its orbit, he said. Russian spacecraft arriving at the station with cargo and crew members are used to help align the station and raise its orbit. Scott Pace, director of George Washington University’s space policy institute, said other issues include replacing ground communications provided by Moscow. He also said that “it remains to be seen whether the Russians will, in fact, be able to launch and sustain theirs. independent station.” The Morning Update and Afternoon Update newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a concise summary of the day’s most important headlines. Sign up today.
