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• Who owns the international space station full#

Since then, NASA has transferred full control over the orbit of the station to Roscosmos - and now it is reaping the fruits of its decision.īut does this mean that without Russia, NASA will have no opportunities to maintain the ISS orbit? Fortunately, no. The problem is that the last shuttle launch took place in 2011, ATV - in 2014. European ATV supply vessels had a similar capability. At the time of the shuttles, NASA used the engines of cruise spacecraft to raise the orbit of the ISS. The Progress spacecraft approaching the ISS. And without regular maneuvers, the station will enter the Earth’s atmosphere and die within about a year. In its current state, the American segment of the ISS is able to successfully perform all the basic functions necessary to maintain the operation of the complex. It is the dependence of the ISS on Zvezda and Progresses that is the main problem associated with the upcoming departure of Russia. On average, about 7.5 tons of fuel per year is spent for these purposes. For this purpose, the engines of the Zvezda module are used, as well as the Progress supply spacecraft. In turn, the Russian segment is almost exclusively responsible for maintaining the ISS orbit and performing space debris evasion maneuvers. Its output is enough not only to support its own needs, but also for Russian colleagues. But if we talk about energy, then its main supplier is the American segment of the ISS. Each segment has its own modules designed for conducting research and experiments.

So, each of the segments is equipped with its own life support and orientation system. Interior of the Destiny laboratory module. Some of them are duplicated, some are not. The fact is that the segments of the station do not live separately - they are closely interconnected and perform the tasks necessary for the successful functioning of the entire complex. Division of responsibilities on the ISSĪlthough Russia’s “quantitative” contribution to the ISS is much smaller than the Western one, dry figures do not solve everything. Without it, Russia’s share decreases to about 12.5% of the ISS mass and 20% of its volume. Meanwhile, it should be taken into account that even though the Zarya module is considered part of the Russian segment, it is legally the property of NASA. In percentage terms, the Russian segment accounts for about 17% of the total mass of the station and about 27% of its sealed volume. The last one consists of six sealed compartments: the functional Cargo Block “Zarya” (dawn), the service module “Zvezda” (star), the small research module “Poisk” (search), the docking cargo “Rassvet” (dawn), the nodal “Prichal” (berth) and the scientific “Nauka” (science). In fact, the ISS is a combination of two space stations, called the American (it includes all Western modules) and the Russian segment. This is important for a better understanding of the situation. So, before we start talking about the future of the ISS, it is necessary to make a small digression and talk about its general structure. All this raises a legitimate question - will the ISS be able to survive after Russia leaves, or is the station doomed? Russian segment of the ISS In turn, it is no secret that NASA plans to operate an orbital outpost until 2031. Most likely, this will happen in 2024, when the current intergovernmental agreement on the work of the ISS expires. If we wade through the mixture of rudeness and threats typical for the head of Roscosmos, they can be reduced to the fact that Russia has decided to leave the station. Over the past weeks, Dmitry Rogozin has made a number of statements about the future of the ISS. Photo taken on Novemby members of the Crew-2 mission.

But it is already obvious that in the near future it will also be cut. After the beginning of the large-scale Russian aggression against Ukraine, the International Space Station (ISS) actually remained the only technological thread connecting Russia with Western countries.