Russia will leave the International Space Station programme in 2025 and concentrate on building its own space station, Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said on Sunday.
Mr Borisov, who oversees Russia’s space industry, announced the move during a television appearance to discuss the government’s plans to build a new space station with international partners.
Although many of its modules were designed to last only 15 years, the ISS is expected to remain in orbit until at least 2030.
Its first module was launched in 1998 and the first ISS crew arrived in 2000.
Russia’s space agency Roscosmos said on Sunday that the decision to leave the programme was not yet final, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported. Roscosmos has said previously that it was open to extending its participation in the project beyond 2024.
“The decision will be made based on the technical condition of the station modules, which have mostly expired their service life, as well as our plans to deploy a new national orbital service station," the space agency said.
"When we make a decision, then we will start negotiations with our partners on the conditions and forms of interaction after 2024."
Russia's President Vladimir Putin said last week that the country must "retain its status as a nuclear and space power" as it marked the 60th anniversary of the pioneering space flight that saw Yuri Gagarin become the first person to reach orbit and made him a national hero.
"We will analyse what needs to be done to strengthen our position in this strategic industry," Mr Putin said.
The Russian leader called for a review of major projects and a new space development strategy over at least 10 years.
Russia's Soyuz rockets have allowed it to remain a key player in space exploration.
For nearly 10 years after the final flight of the US space shuttle programme, Soyuz rockets were the only ones certified to carry astronauts to the ISS.
The first Emirati astronaut, Hazza Al Mansouri, blasted off to the space station aboard a Soyuz rocket in 2019.
But Elon Musk's SpaceX last year delivered the first astronauts to the ISS as part of Nasa's Commercial Crew Programme, seeing off rival Boeing and ending Russia's monopoly on manned launches to the station.
A second crewed SpaceX mission to the ISS is due to take off later this week.
Russia last month marked the 20th anniversary of the de-orbit of the Soviet Union’s last national space station, Mir, which burned up in the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of a trailblazing 15-year programme.
Many of the lessons learned on board Mir fed directly into the ISS programme.
Two cosmonauts, Vladimir Titov and Musa Manarov, became the first people to spend a whole year in space on board the station during 1988.
Cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov spent 437 consecutive days aboard Mir between January 1994 and March 1995. It remains the longest-ever human space flight.
Missions like those have played a significant role in studies of the effects of long-term space flight on humans, helping protect astronauts living on the ISS.
As space agencies begin to look toward the Moon and Mars, the vital lessons will no doubt continue to protect future astronauts.
Mir also paved the way for a period of renewed co-operation in space between the US and Russia.
Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin has set a series of ambitious goals for the space programme in recent years, despite funding cuts.
Speaking on the anniversary of the Gagarin flight, he said Russia was "on the cusp of very important changes" that will lead to next-generation spacecraft and lunar missions.
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
Tom Fletcher on 'soft power'
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300 Cabriolet
Price, base / as tested: Dh275,250 / Dh328,465
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 245hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,300rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.0L / 100km
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
Autumn international scores
Saturday, November 24
Italy 3-66 New Zealand
Scotland 14-9 Argentina
England 37-18 Australia
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
BACK%20TO%20ALEXANDRIA
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ETamer%20Ruggli%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENadine%20Labaki%2C%20Fanny%20Ardant%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E3.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The chef's advice
Troy Payne, head chef at Abu Dhabi’s newest healthy eatery Sanderson’s in Al Seef Resort & Spa, says singles need to change their mindset about how they approach the supermarket.
“They feel like they can’t buy one cucumber,” he says. “But I can walk into a shop – I feed two people at home – and I’ll walk into a shop and I buy one cucumber, I’ll buy one onion.”
Mr Payne asks for the sticker to be placed directly on each item, rather than face the temptation of filling one of the two-kilogram capacity plastic bags on offer.
The chef also advises singletons not get too hung up on “organic”, particularly high-priced varieties that have been flown in from far-flung locales. Local produce is often grown sustainably, and far cheaper, he says.
<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html" charset="UTF-8" /></head><body><!--PSTYLE=* Labels%3aFH Label 18 Sport--><p>Beach soccer</p><!--PSTYLE=BY Byline--><p>Amith Passela</p><p /></body></html>
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3EFounder%3A%20Hani%20Abu%20Ghazaleh%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20with%20an%20office%20in%20Montreal%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%202018%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Virtual%20Reality%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%241.2%20million%2C%20and%20nearing%20close%20of%20%245%20million%20new%20funding%20round%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A