Space
NASA Suspends Relations with Russia, Except for International Space Station
Thomas Carannante
First Posted: Apr 03, 2014 10:12 AM EDT
Due to Russia's handling of the crisis in Ukraine, NASA decided to sever ties with them until further notice. However, activities related to the International Space Station are exempt since there's currently an ongoing mission.
According to memo sent to workers yesterday, NASA told their employees that they cannot travel to Russia, host Russian visitors, or contact their Russian counterparts in any manner (specifically noting email and teleconferences) until the moratorium is lifted. NASA previously insisted that politics would not affect space relations, but they seemed to have decided against that as the conflict in Ukraine worsened.
NASA officially released a statement after the memo sent to their employees was leaked to the public. Just last week, a the Russian Soyuz TMA-12M rocket sent three astronauts to the International Space Station, one of them being American Steve Swanson. Currently on the ISS, there are three Russians, two Americans, and one Japanese crewmember.
"Given Russia's ongoing violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, NASA is suspending the majority of its ongoing engagements with the Russian Federation," the agency said via this NPR news article. "NASA and Roscosmos will, however, continue to work together to maintain safe and continuous operation of the International Space Station."
Although NASA pledged to prevent global politics from affecting their space relations, their close alignment with the United States government may have ultimately made them decide otherwise. It would be extremely difficult for the U.S. to suspend the ISS operations with Russia because the two signed an agreement last April that lasts until 2017. In the agreement, the Russian Soyuz rockets will make six trips to the ISS, which U.S. passengers will rely on until the contract expires. The cost per seat on the rockets is $70.7 million.
NASA insists that despite the temporary halt in communications, their relationship with Russia remains normal and nothing in the long term will be affected by the decision.
To read more about NASA temporarily severing ties with Russia, visit this Guardian news article.
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First Posted: Apr 03, 2014 10:12 AM EDT
Due to Russia's handling of the crisis in Ukraine, NASA decided to sever ties with them until further notice. However, activities related to the International Space Station are exempt since there's currently an ongoing mission.
According to memo sent to workers yesterday, NASA told their employees that they cannot travel to Russia, host Russian visitors, or contact their Russian counterparts in any manner (specifically noting email and teleconferences) until the moratorium is lifted. NASA previously insisted that politics would not affect space relations, but they seemed to have decided against that as the conflict in Ukraine worsened.
NASA officially released a statement after the memo sent to their employees was leaked to the public. Just last week, a the Russian Soyuz TMA-12M rocket sent three astronauts to the International Space Station, one of them being American Steve Swanson. Currently on the ISS, there are three Russians, two Americans, and one Japanese crewmember.
"Given Russia's ongoing violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, NASA is suspending the majority of its ongoing engagements with the Russian Federation," the agency said via this NPR news article. "NASA and Roscosmos will, however, continue to work together to maintain safe and continuous operation of the International Space Station."
Although NASA pledged to prevent global politics from affecting their space relations, their close alignment with the United States government may have ultimately made them decide otherwise. It would be extremely difficult for the U.S. to suspend the ISS operations with Russia because the two signed an agreement last April that lasts until 2017. In the agreement, the Russian Soyuz rockets will make six trips to the ISS, which U.S. passengers will rely on until the contract expires. The cost per seat on the rockets is $70.7 million.
NASA insists that despite the temporary halt in communications, their relationship with Russia remains normal and nothing in the long term will be affected by the decision.
To read more about NASA temporarily severing ties with Russia, visit this Guardian news article.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone