Head of Russian Space Agency Threatens to Withhold Access to New ISS Robotic Arm

The invasion of Ukraine has taken a toll on Russia’s ongoing partnerships with the U.S. and Europe in area. Yesterday, the European Space Agency introduced that it’s absolutely terminating its cooperation with its Russian counterpart on an upcoming mission to Mars, prompting Roscosmos to threaten entry to Europe’s new robotic arm.

ESA and Russia have been set to launch a lander and rover to Mars in September as a part of the ExoMars mission, however ESA’s council introduced yesterday that it’s going to now not be cooperating with Russia on the mission attributable to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.

The area company had launched a statement earlier in February condemning the battle, declaring that it was “assessing the consequences on each of our ongoing programs conducted in cooperation with the Russian state space agency Roscosmos.” ESA suspended the ExoMars mission, however the council’s newest resolution declared that ESA is formally terminating its partnership with the Russian area company on the Mars mission. In April, ESA introduced that it received’t be participating in Russia’s upcoming Luna misssions to the Moon, and for a similar causes.

Shortly after the council’s resolution was made public, Roscosmos director Dmitry Rogozin predictably went off on a rant towards ESA by means of his Telegram web page. “Did this head of the European Space Agency think how many thousands of scientists and engineers in Europe and Russia he crossed out with his decision?,” Rogozin wrote. “Is he ready to answer for sabotaging a joint Martian mission?” He added that Roscosmos is engaged on retrieving the Kazachok lander, which was constructed by Russia for the ExoMars mission and transported to Italy in 2019 for launch preparations.

Rogozin then went on to “command” Roscosmos cosmonauts on board the ISS to discontinue their work on the European robotic arm hooked up to the Russian orbital section of the area station and difficult ESA’s Aschbacher to “fly to space” and do it himself. The 37-foot-long arm launched to area in July 2021, and is designed to work exterior the Russian facet of the area station. But the robotic arm is just not but absolutely put in; cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev of Roscosmos carried out a spacewalk again in April to start set up of the enormous arm. Artemyev is scheduled to go on one other spacewalk on July 21, together with ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, to assist end the set up work. This upcoming spacewalk is now doubtful, nevertheless it’s not clear if the cosmonauts will adhere to Rogozin’s “command.” As for the way forward for the ExoMars mission, that’s additionally doubtful, however Aschbacher mentioned ESA can have extra to say on the matter throughout a July 20 media briefing.

Tensions have been excessive as of late between Russia and its ISS companions. The Russian area company lately posted images on its official Telegram channel of three cosmonauts holding up the flags of Russian-backed areas in Ukraine in blatant assist of the continued invasion. As a end result, NASA issued a uncommon assertion condemning using the orbital outpost as a spot to conduct political propaganda.

In February, U.S. President Joe Biden declared that the worldwide sanctions imposed towards Russia would additionally influence its area program, stating that sanctions would “degrade their aerospace industry.” Russia can’t afford to lose each its European and U.S. counterparts, so the Roscosmos chief may have to chill off, and permit for operations to run easily aboard the orbiting area station.

More: Taking Out the Trash on the International Space Station Just Got a Lot Easier.