Are Our Astronauts Screwed If Relations With Russia Sour?

What will we do if our relationship with Russia sours? Pull a shuttle out of mothballs?

Nothing.

Well, cosmonauts were stuck up on the MIR for an extra week or so when the Berlin Wall fell...it would get sorted out somehow....

If US-Russia relations sour to the point of nuclear war, orbit might ironically be one of the safer places to be.

One might recommend they become fluent in Chinese.

Though first one might clarify what one meant by 'souring'. A complete breakdown in communications, or merely a row before breakfast?

If you truly want to initiate legitimate debate, you'll need to learn to be more specific.

We have options, but you can only pay via Pay-Pal

Great thread, Midnight Funeral.

I would think they would merely accelerate their desire to splash the ISS as the U.S. wants it operational a lot more than Russia does.

Amazing how many people give lip service to the space program without any clue what's out there beyond NASA.

Yeah, that is pretty sweet.

Without cooperation the ISS couldn't function. In a situation where relations have broken down to this level any astronauts or cosmonauts up there are fucked regardless of whether there is a soyuz on a launchpad to bring them down or not.

Until any of our private ships becomes operational and certified to carry humans, we are at the mercy of the Russians. They can charge what they want (they already upped the price), deny rides or anything else they feel like. This is a bad position to be in.

Why? Russian cosmonauts could fully man and operate the station without anyone else.

I'm willing to bet that there are a hundred buttons you could press in either the Russian or US station control rooms on the ground that would essentially render their module uninhabitable.

Actually more like six months.

IIRC one of the cosmonauts set a new space endurance record of over 400 days.

When he went into orbit the Soviet Union still officially existed.

by the way, denying access to the ISS would be more trouble than its worth for the Russians.

In all likelihood the worst they would do is increase the rate for the U.S. by 20-30 million per astronaut per trip.

I very much doubt it.

Really? Wow.
I knew it was awhile.

The Soviets/Russians were still able to send up resupply (Progress) capsules.

They just couldn't afford to send up a man rated Soyuz for the return trip.

Do you remember that Russian rocket that crashed not long after launch back in the 1990s because someone had stolen so much of its fuel that it couldn't reach orbit?

The the time their cosmonauts on Mir opened up the Progress supply capsule to find that someone had pilfered much of the food that was supposed to be aboard.

By the way, are the Russians still letting Americans ride in the back seat of SU-27 Flankers for $25,000 per half hour of flight?

Or being allowed to ride in a T-80 tank for the same amount (you got to shoot the main gun once).

Crazy world.

I agree. It should never have come to this either.

Hell, no. They'll be fine. Where NASA has failed, J. Allen Spacenautical Technologies has stepped in to fill the role with the creation of a lenticular graded support column.



Hooray private industry! Oh, and watch that first step.

Now's the time to raise the prospect of the space elevator on a conveyor belt.

[YT="Where were you when they built the ladder to heaven..."]VJ_E7Vce8vU[/YT]

That's sub-orbital only. No good.

Though with a little more development, I've no doubt they could do it.

If you're referring to my post, no. An orbital ship is a completely different animal. The primary difference is there's no need for extensive heat shielding on a sub-orbital. You need a radically different design for an orbit capable ship.

The US and Russia have never particularly liked each other. We've had a marriage of convenience more than anything after the fall of the USSR and downfall of Yeltsin. You can expect more and more tension from here out. Putin now has to turn his attention to keeping China down. Any whines from us and it will be "Shut up, Shut up, Shut up!!! Do you have any idea how fucking busy I am!?!?!"

Maybe we can retrofit a submarine and go rescue them!

Captain Otter as the commanding officer!

On a related note, there's always the Stairway to Heaven...

I think I saw that movie. When they finally touch down again, most of the survivors on earth were either cannibals or zombies. I forget which.