NASA confirms that American astronauts on the ISS will return by Russian vehicles

On March 14, the International Space Agency (NASA) confirmed that the conflict in Ukraine did not affect the operation of the International Space Station (ISS) or the expected return of an American astronaut by cable- russian cents later this month.

The International Space Station is a symbol of Russian-American cooperation. (Photo: NASA)

Astronaut Mark Vande Hei is expected to return with his 2 colleagues Pyotr Dubrov and Anton Shkaplerov by Russian Soyuz cable on May 30, after 355 days on the ISS, a record level for the US.

There have been concerns in recent days that rising tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine could trap the 55-year-old astronaut on the orbiting research station.

Speaking to the press on March 14, Joel Montalbano, NASA’s ISS program manager, said: “I can guarantee that Mark will go home by Soyuz. We are talking with our Russian colleagues. There’s nothing to worry about that. The astronauts will return home.”

“There is some talk of that, but I can assure you that we are ready. Our colleagues in Roscosmos have confirmed that they will bring the whole crew back, all three of them,” Montalbano said.

Over the weekend, Russian space program director Dmitry Rogozin warned that Western sanctions against Russia would cause the ISS to collapse by disrupting spacecraft operations to keep the ISS in orbit.

But on March 14, Russia’s TASS news agency wrote: “Russian space agency Roscosmos never makes its partners doubt its credibility” and cosmonaut Vande Hei will return as scheduled. .

Mr. Montalbano confirmed that there will be no change to the day-to-day operations of the ISS.

“All operations have been going on for 20 years and nothing has changed in the last 3 weeks: our control center runs successfully, flawlessly and seamlessly,” he said.

While the American part provides power and life support, the Russian compartment plays an essential role for altitude control and thrust. This dependency has existed since the project was started in the 1990s.

The US is exploring means to keep the space station in orbit using the propulsion of Northrop Grumman and SpaceX spacecraft, but that hasn’t happened yet.

Russia and the United States have long exchanged views by sending Russian cosmonauts to Hawthorne, California, for training with a SpaceX spacecraft, and American astronauts to Russia’s Star City to train the Soyuz cable-carrying ship. Mr Montalbano insisted the operation was still planned “at this time”.