The corporation noted that the technical possibility of the ISS arch from orbit has been studied since its creation
MOSCOW, February 3. /tass/. The technical capability of the ISS arch from orbit has been worked out since its creation. The decision on flooding will be made at the level of the governments of the participating countries of the project, the press service of the Rocket and Space Corporation (RSC) Energia told TASS.
"The technical possibility of the station's arch from orbit is being worked out, including together with partners, from the moment of the station's creation, as it is one of the stages of the product's flight," the press service noted.
According to the corporation, "the issue of the terms of operation of the station and, accordingly, the timing of its flooding is determined at the governmental level of the partner countries under the International Space Station program, and not solely by one of the parties."
The ISS member countries had previously agreed that the costs of flooding the station would be divided in proportion to the mass of the objects being reduced (modules included in the Russian and American segments).
"At the same time, a mutual agreement was reached earlier that the expenses for the flooding operation would be proportional to the masses of the objects being reduced," the press service noted.
The corporation recalled that Russian specialists are currently responsible for changing the orbit of the station, since there is such an opportunity in the Russian segment to make corrections using the engines of Progress cargo ships. "It is worth noting that the tasks of information and flooding will also fall on the Russian side and the specialists of the Main Operational Control Group," RSC Energia added.
At the end of January, Vladimir Solovyov, General Designer for manned space systems and complexes of Russia, General designer of the Rocket and Space Corporation Energia, said that specialists from the United States in 2021 for the first time seriously turned to Russia to decide how the International Space Station would be flooded in the future. According to him, the American partners have been thinking for a long time what to do next, Solovyov noted, because they understand that it is necessary to create a new station.
In January, in a presentation presented by Roscosmos CEO Dmitry Rogozin at a meeting on the results of 2021, it was reported that the state corporation and NASA are consulting on extending the operation of the ISS until 2030.
