On April 12, Cosmonautics Day, it is worth remembering not only the great past of the Soviet space program, but also what prospects Russia faces in space today. The nearest of them is the construction of its own orbital station instead of the soon–to-be-extinct ISS. What will it be like and what will it give our country?
The days of the International Space Station are gradually fading into the past. The beginning of the creation of the station was laid back in 1998, and then it was assumed that it would last about 15 years. However, as time passed, a special international commission has already extended the life of the orbital station several times, considering it safe enough for further operations.
This November, the International Space Station will turn 27 years old, which is more than a decent period of time. It is assumed that it will serve humanity for several more years, remaining the largest and most expensive scientific object in outer space. It is already clear that, at least in the near future, humanity will follow the path of creating national stations, as China has already done.
Despite the fact that international experience in the creation and operation of the International Space Station is more than successful, it has also shown many pitfalls of such joint work. Some of the experiments were too sensitive and delicate to be shown to the other half, primarily to the United States. In addition, the work of the ISS has more than once or twice become a bargaining chip during the negotiations of politicians.
Russia has been working for several years towards the creation of its own national orbital station ROS (Russian Orbital Station). Vladimir Solovyov, General Designer for Manned Space Systems and Complexes at RSC Energia, stated that the first scientific energy module (NEM) is scheduled to be launched in December 2027. NEM will be responsible for generating electricity and oxygen for the entire plant, as well as water supply and sanitation. The ISS will still be operating at this time, which means that a gap in the experience of manned flights can be avoided.
The launch of the NEM into orbit will be the beginning of the first stage of the creation of the ROS. By 2030, a total of four modules will be put into orbit and docked. The next one after the NEM will be the base module, in which up to four astronauts should live, the airlock module and the universal node module. The universal hub module will become the hub and crossroads of the entire station, to which the remaining ROS segments will dock.
The second stage of ROS development, which will begin in 2030, will have to add two more target segments. One of them is a laboratory module that will be optimized to work with different experiments on board the station. There will be a large number of specially trained workplaces where experimental equipment will be delivered from Earth. As well as a cargo lock to deliver experiments to the outer surface of the station and back without people going into outer space. This approach has proven itself well in the Russian module "Science" and even earlier in the Japanese module Kibo.
The next module should be a production module designed to create various alloys and materials in zero gravity conditions. Experiments on the production of alloys, for example, are already being conducted in the conditions of the International space station. ("Peritektika"), protein crystallization software ("Crystallizer"). The results of these experiments can be successfully used on Earth.
In addition to the laboratory and production module, there are several other options for expanding the ROS station. First, it is the possibility of launching an experimental inflatable module into orbit and using it as part of the station. Such modules are very promising and allow you to create a room much larger than the size of the head fairings, limiting their size.
Secondly, it is planned to place a base station on the ROS to form a small orbital group of small guided spacecraft. It is planned that astronauts at ROS will be able to quickly deploy small spacecraft, repair and modernize them if necessary. In other words, using ROS, it will be possible to launch a group of automatic satellites, for example, for remote sensing of the Earth. And if necessary, return them on board for refueling or repair.
One of the innovations of the ROS orbital station in comparison with the ISS will be an unusual orbit for stations of previous generations.
ROS will operate in a circumpolar orbit with an inclination of 96.8 degrees. Some types of spacecraft for remote sensing of the Earth are located in such orbits.
This will allow the ROS to fly over the entire territory of Russia, as well as over the polar regions of our planet. The ISS is much less convenient in this regard, the inclination of 51.6 degrees is closest to the latitude of Saratov. Even Moscow and St. Petersburg are difficult to observe from this angle.
There are disadvantages to the circumpolar orbit. Most likely, due to the proximity to the radiation belts, the time spent by astronauts on one flight will be limited to six months or even a little less for a standard flight. Accordingly, the station will not be permanently habitable, as the International Space Station is now, but will be preserved between individual expeditions, as previously "Salyuty" or "Mir". The International Space Station does not have such an option, it must have at least one crew member on each segment.
The altitude of the orbit will also be lower, about 350 kilometers. However, during the time of the Space Shuttle, the ISS operated even lower, as it was necessary for American space shuttles.
To create a ROS, a total of 34 launch vehicles must be launched. According to Vladimir Kozhevnikov, General Designer of RSC Energia, 15 launches of heavy launch vehicles of the Angara-A5M type and 19 launches of medium-class launch vehicles of the Soyuz-2.1b type have already been planned for the creation of the station and its support. For the first stage, all Progress ROS transport cargo ships are planned to be launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome, but starting in 2031, launches will be moved to the Vostochny cosmodrome.
As a result, Russia should get its own national orbital station, where it will be convenient to conduct any experiments without unnecessary eyes and ears, as well as a platform for testing the latest and most high-tech solutions. And perhaps a new step between orbital work and preparation for interplanetary missions.
Mikhail Kotov
