Russia unveils $7bn plan for new space station, targeting 2027 launch
The Russian space agency Roscosmos has revealed a plan to build a new space station, likely to be named the Russian Orbital Station (ROS). They intend to send the first research and energy module into space in 2027, and astronauts are expected to arrive at the station by 2028.
According to a statement from Roscosmos, the construction of the Russian space station will cost approximately $7 billion. Russia plans to send its first module into space within the next three years, with subsequent modules to be delivered by 2030. These modules will form the main part of ROS. The second construction phase is planned for 2031-2033, during which two specialised modules named TsM1 and TsM2 will be added to the station.
The Russians will build a new space station
As reported by the Russian state news agency TASS, the general schedule for creating ROS includes flight tests of new spacecraft, the creation of launch rockets and ground infrastructure, and the work of research institutes in the space industry that will support the project. Meanwhile, Space.com notes that the schedule for building the station depends on the Angara A5 launch rocket. Since 2014, this new-generation rocket has passed three successful orbital flight tests, but in 2021, it recorded a partial failure.
According to Space.com, the Russian space station may orbit the same height as the current International Space Station (ISS), approximately 250 miles above Earth. It will likely be placed in a polar orbit, which, according to Roscosmos, is optimal for observing the entire planet and offers the possibility of monitoring the Northern Sea Route. This route connects Asia with Europe along the northern coast of Russia and is of significant political importance to the Kremlin.
The Russians first announced their intentions to build their own space station in 2021, signalling a desire to create a facility that would succeed the Mir space station, which the Soviet Union constructed and deorbited in 2001. In 2022, after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, they announced plans to leave the International Space Station after 2024. Russia claims it will remain involved in the ISS programme until 2028.
