Russian Space Program Gets $52Bln Boost

[Crisp]

Russian Space Program Gets $52Bln Boost

 

As a [female body part]-for-tat sanctions war vaporizes U.S.-Russian space cooperation, the Russian government has boosted the budget of its Federal Space Agency by 1.8 trillion rubles ($52 billion) to modernize and expand its existing infrastructure and capabilities by 2020.

The new program for Russian space activities through 2020 was quietly released on Tuesday, the same day that Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin issued a series of controversial statements painting the future of U.S.-Russian space cooperation in a bleak light.

According to Rogozin, Russia will not accept a NASA proposal to extend the life of the International Space Station, or ISS beyond 2020, and instead will be looking to other projects and partners. The new space policy, which pledges 1.8 trillion rubles toward modernization and development efforts throughout the Russian space industry, appears to be a step toward ensuring Russia is free to pursue its own interests in space after its ISS obligations are fulfilled in 2020.

Rogozin tweeted that Russia will discuss cooperative space projects with China at a summit meting in Beijing on May 19.

 

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[McKay]

Lol that word is censored, but bastard isn't? Were the list of censored words randomly chosen put of a hat?

[DocM]

Seems like it :)

Rogozin & Co. had better use a bunch of that money on replacing Proton given its 11.5% failure rate - way too many screwing themselves into the ground. Without a reliable heavy lifter their ambitions are daydreams.

As it is the Angara 1 launching this summer can only do 3 tonnes. They need the medium and heavy versions as of 5 years ago.

[DocM]

Interesting quotes from former NASA & USAF spaceflight operations specialist and space journalist James Oberg, author of Red Star in Orbit and Star-Crossed Orbits: Inside the U.S.-Russian Space Alliance.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/ukraine-crisis-in-space-us-takes-on-the-russians-only-this-time-its-over-the-international-space-station-9391334.html

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James Oberg, a former rocket engineer and author of Star-Crossed Orbits, a book about the two country's joint history in space, said that the latest exchange of words marked the end of their "partnership of reluctant co-dependence" and the beginning of a new era for the industry.

"This represents a shift in space operations that has long been gathering force," he said. "We're moving from the Cern model, where everyone builds one thing together, to the Antarctic model, where everyone has their own programme."

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The Russian threats could prove positive for Nasa as well as the private sector. The agency's chief executive, Charles Bolden, used the threat of limited launches as both stick and carrot to force Congress to accept Barack Obama's proposed $17.5bn budget for 2015, including $848m for the agency's "Commercial Crew" programme. "The choice moving forward is between fully funding the President's request to bring space launches back to American soil or continuing to send millions to the Russians," wrote Mr Bolden in a blog post at the end of March. "It's that simple."

"What Mr Rogozin is doing is strengthening Nasa's hand to accelerate existing programmes for full autonomy," added Mr Oberg. "And when they arrive ? the really far-sighted Russians have been telling me ? in the next three to five years, the last segment of the space industry where Russia has a powerful role will be closed off to them. They'll be irrelevant."