Bill Nelson said he expects to discuss climate issues with the CEO of Roscosmos
WASHINGTON, January 11. /tass/. The head of the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Bill Nelson, is looking forward to meeting with Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Rogozin, the timing of the visit of the head of the US space agency to the Russian Federation will depend on the situation with the coronavirus. Nelson said this at a briefing on Tuesday, answering a question from TASS.
"I am looking forward to a personal meeting with Dmitry, and in the meantime we will continue to talk as often as necessary," he said. "As for when this trip will take place, I'm just at the mercy of covid. Until we see that the pandemic is receding, I won't be able to go. That's why we often call on the phone. Our departments, of course, maintain constant contact," Nelson explained.
The head of NASA recalled that American "astronauts are sent on Russian Soyuz <...> to and from the International Space Station."
He said that he expects to discuss climate issues with Rogozin during his visit to Russia. "NASA is constantly in contact with our Russian colleagues. Because, as you know, we jointly manage the International Space Station (ISS). Our astronauts and Russian cosmonauts maintain a permanent presence on the space station," Nelson said. He noted that "scientific experiments are being conducted on the space station that are directly related to the climate."
"Of course, the climate will be one of the topics [of discussion] when I meet with Dmitry Rogozin during an official <...> visit," Nelson said. "Of course, this is exactly what will happen, because this is one of the key issues not only for NASA, but also for the entire US government," the head of NASA stressed.
The briefing was dedicated to the appointment of Catherine Calvin as a leading NASA scientist and Nelson's advisor on climate issues.
As Sergey Saveliev, Deputy Director General of Roscosmos for International Cooperation, noted in early December, Moscow hopes that Nelson will visit Russia in 2022. Earlier, Rogozin informed that the head of NASA promised to come to Russia with his family.
