Farewell to the ISS: Russia presents its own space station Ross

Russia seems to back up its words with deeds and is taking a step further towards saying goodbye to the International Space Station (ISS). The Russian aerospace agency Roskosmos has now presented a first model of its own space station. This could hear on the name “Ross” and is to be established probably already between 2025 and 2030 in the orbit.

Farewell to the ISS approaches and Ross is coming

In late July, Russia announced that it would say goodbye to the ISS after 2024. The outcry was great, given the good cooperation between cosmonauts and astronauts, far from the disputes on the globe. Therefore it did not surprise aerospace experts when Roskosmos then relativized its own statements a short time later. Some saw in it possibly even a parting of the ways. That Russia was not bluffing, however, is now apparently becoming clear. Roskosmos, for example, has presented a compact model of its own space station at a military trade show, according to a report from Reuters. The Russian space station is also said to already have a name. Thus one speaks in the Russian media of “Ross”.

Living space for up to four cosmonauts

The structure of the space station can already be understood very well on the basis of the small model. It is probably made up of a total of six individual modules. The commissioning of the same is to proceed in two stages. Basic operation should be possible after the first four modules have been built. The remaining two will follow. A maximum of four cosmonauts will be able to live on Ross. But Russia apparently does not want to rely on permanent occupation. Instead, Ross will probably be able to remain unmanned in space for a while. This represents a decisive difference to the ISS.

Of course, Russia also emphasized advantages compared to the ISS during the presentation. For example, there is supposed to be a better view of the Earth. It all looks as if Russia is actually working at full speed on its own space station at the moment. In the meantime, NASA, as Roskosmos’ counterpart, has been informed about the Russian plans. The US-American aerospace agency has been informed that the cooperation in the ISS will continue until the own project is finished.