ISS - twenty years together

On October 31, 2000, the first main expedition to the International Space Station began from the Baikonur cosmodrome on the Soyuz TM-31 ship. The crew members are American astronaut William Sheperd, the first ISS commander, and two Russian cosmonaut-bortinaster Yuri Gizenko (ship commander) and Sergey Krikalyov.

On November 2, the Soyuz was attached to the Stares' service module, which laid the foundation for the work of the ISS-1 expedition and at the same time 20-year history of the joint flight of former opponents in the Cold War. Of course, it should be noted that the history of the ISS began back in 1993, when an agreement on the International Space Station was signed by Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin and US Vice President Albert Gorr.

In parallel with the coordination of the appearance of the ISS, its joint design on the postal program of Freedom and MIR-2 programs and the manufacture of modules began the Mir-Shattl program [ 1 ]. Seven times the shuttle of Atlantis, the Indevor and Discovery joined with the Mir station, which was visited by 44 NASA astronauts, including long -term expeditions, together with Russian astronauts.

But if at the Mir station, astronauts from the United States were still visiting, then an unprecedented partnership began on the ISS. According to the project, the station consists of two relatively independent segments: American and Russian. At the same time, it is designed as a whole, and the statements of the Russian segment frequent since 2014 have always been only words for an independent flight - both parts of the ISS supplement each other and today cannot exist separately.

The largest object of mankind in space demanded impressive financial injections from partners, as well as creating a joint ground -based management system, including flight management centers, cosmodromes, ground -based infrastructure facilities and satellite navigation and relaying radio signals [ 2 ].

Building the entire project required serious political decisions, because it participates in it for many countries with their interests - their number ranged from 14 to 15 [3]. It is known that in the US Congress in June 1993 the issue of refusing to build the station together with Russia was raised, the advantage in favor of the ISS was unanimous: 216 versus 215.

Fortunately, all difficulties were overcome, and a space laboratory appeared in orbit with a wide range of scientific experiments on technology, zero gravity, biology, medicine, astrophysics.

Joint work on the station and reservation made the project quite stable. The tragic death of Shattla Columbia in February 2003, the accident of American and Russian cargo ships, serious breakdowns on board the station - all emerging problems were solved by partners, and the expeditions were not interrupted. Since October 31, 2000, there have always been and there are people in space (from two to 13 people).

Now the work of the station is planned until 2024, but the partner countries are discussing its extension until about 2030. On the one hand, this will allow you to get a scientific returns with invested money, and on the other hand, not to give priority in a low near -earth orbit of China, which in 2021 begins the construction of its own large manned station in space.

Russia expects to complete its segment. In April 2021, according to the plan, the Schuka multi -purpose laboratory module [ 4 ] should be attached to the station, in the same year the pier's nodal module will be delivered and attached from below. Later, a scientific and energy module (NEM) will be installed on the side docking unit. This will increase the crew from the Russian Federation to three astronauts and expand the possibilities for the scientific use of the Russian segment. Additional places will appear inside and out of the station to accommodate scientific equipment.

The past decade was remembered by the fact that Russia delivered to the ISS on the Soyuz piloted ships from the USA, Canada, Europe and Japan, which allowed Roscosmos to earn good money in contracts with NASA, but the Russian segment itself did not receive noticeable development.

The press service of Roscosmos talks little about what is happening at the station and about its prospects. Relative progress can only be called the appearance of public accounts in social networks in the astronauts, where those interested can read about life on board the station, about the work performed and watch photos taken from the station of the station [ 5 ].

This is an example: news about noticeable events in space, usually associated with some breakdowns in the Russian segment of the ISS, these are by no means messages of the press service of Roscosmos. Similar information comes to information agencies in an unusual way. A few years ago, NASA opened and launched the negotiations between Earth and Tsup-on the channel www.utream.tv/channel/live-iss-stream . This is a common practice for the United States, enshrined in legislation. Of course, not everything is broadcast there. There are closed channels, for private medical negotiations, etc. You can listen to ordinary negotiations that all operators from their consoles in Tsups hear. Without full-fledged information from the press service of Roscosmos, employees of news agencies listen and decipher negotiations, and on their basis write news, and then they diverge on other media.

Russian cosmonauts speak with Tsup through the American voice communications channel, which goes through TDRS retranstters. Russia has a ray-reservoir, but it has not yet been possible to switch to its own connection. In this case, journalists, over, would not have access to her. And thanks to the openness of the NASA, we learn about the breakdowns of the toilet, the oxygen production system, etc. Details of the search for the depressurization site in the Zvezda service module of the Russian segment are also known from the crew negotiations and are recorded on the network [ 6 ].

It is hoped that this problem will be resolved and the ISS will continue its work in normal mode. After all, the probability that in the first half of the 21st century Russia will be able to enter the space project of the scale of the International Space Station is extremely small.

The coming decade for manned cosmonautics should be the decade of the moon. In 2017, NASA and Roscosmos signed a statement of cooperation in the field of research and development of long -distance space and the creation of the Gateway near moon station. In her concept there was a Russian gateway module for the exits of astronauts into outer space. However, since the arrival of Dmitry Rogozin, the general director of Roscosmos, arrived in 2018, negotiations on Russia's participation in the project of Gateway station have come to a dead end. Our country does not support the frame “Artemis's Agreement”, proposed by the United States for the project on the study and development of the Moon [ 7 ]. This is due to deep political contradictions between Russia and Western countries.

In this difficult time, the bridge between states that is an international space station is so important.

Alexander Khokhlov, Cosmonautics Popularizer,
Member of the North-West Organization of the Cosmonautics Federation of the Russian Federation