The takeoff of the capsule Soyuz MS-22 yesterday caught many eyes. Indeed, despite the sanctions, threats and the escalation of the situation after the invasion of Ukraine, the American astronaut Frank Rubio took off with his Russian colleagues. And cosmonaut Anna Kikina will leave Florida in two weeks.
A real alliance or a return to normality?
Give me your seat…
After the declarations of last spring and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, questions have punctuated the last six months as to the medium-term future of the International Space Station. But despite the exchanges of sanctions, it is not a question of taking irreversible decisions either: there is joint work in progress in the field of manned flights which would be extremely penalizing for everyone to stop… The exchanges of seats in the American and Russian capsules are among them.
The deal has actually been expected since 2020 and the “Crew-1” mission of SpaceX’s new space vehicle. Russia was waiting for several flights before allowing its astronauts to fly on the American side, and the discussions took time, in particular with the gesticulating ex-director of Roscosmos, D. Rogozin. His replacement is much more discreet…
Americans on Soyuz
Thus, from the month of August, Frank Rubio joined the City of Stars (near Moscow), validating his general knowledge to take place within the Soyuz capsule. Since the beginning of September, he had joined Baikonur with Sergei Prokopiev (experienced, who commands the mission) and Dmitri Petelin who, like the American astronaut, is conducting his very first space campaign there.
Yesterday, September 21 at 3:54 p.m. (Paris), their Soyuz 2.1a rocket launched into the Kazakh evening, in a clear dark sky torn by large flames. 9 minutes later, space flight routine and rescue, the capsule was ejected into low orbit. It then only took him a few hours to reach the International Space Station… And from the start of the evening, the hatch was open so that the 10 occupants of the ISS could celebrate with a big hug the arrival of the new ones. Smiles and mutual aid, images far removed from terrestrial diplomatic sites.
And the Russians on Crew Dragon
Was it therefore “historic”, a “rebuff on sanctions”, an appeasement or a new alliance as we have read this morning? On the contrary, it is a return to normal. After more than a decade without shuttles, observers have forgotten that the Americans certainly used Soyuz a lot to reach the station, but that it was also common for Russians to make the trip within Discovery, Endeavor or Atlantis. The takeoff in a few days, on October 4, of the Russian Anna Kikina within Crew Dragon will therefore not be a symbol either.
These exchanges of seats are above all part of a perspective of crew safety and the sustainability of the station. Indeed, as things stand, it is necessary to ensure Russian and American permanence on the ISS, and exchanging astronauts and cosmonauts makes it possible to maintain a continuous presence in the event of a problem with one of the vehicles. The recent activation of the emergency backup system of the American capsule New Shepard reminds us that, despite the reliability of manned vehicles, there are always risks to spaceflight, and they are not only political.
Source : space flight now
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