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[Starver]

I did a(n all too) brief summary in the Not Yet WW3 thread of how the current events sparked by Russia, and the resulting sanctions, might affect impending launches by Roscosmos/etc. I meant to scan further ahead, but never got round to it.

However, it's been publically announced that the 2022 launch of British-built Rosilind Franklin rover, which was due to be sent on the ExoMars joint ESA/Russia project, is now unlikely to go ahead. All the bits are built (including the Russian components for landing it) but, well... now messy in various ways, not the least politically.

Theoretically, a different launch system could be sourced, there are a few obvious providers with the right sort of capabilities to get heading Marsward. A different descent (and possibly pre-descent) system would need to be built from scratch, though. Unless, if we're lucky, an adapted version can be cobbled together from prior mission 'spares' for similar setups!

I haven't checked to see if the RF is currently still 'in the west' or is already in Russia (depends on where in the remaining pre-flight testing/rigging cycle it is) so that could be an active problem too. I think it's a few months off needing to be married to the Russian hardware, though.

(Not a huge thing, on the human scale, but definitely a problem when you've got optimal Mars-transfer slots only coming round every few years.)

[Magmacube_tr]

Verona Rupes, the highest cliff in the solar system. It's about 20 kilometers in height.

Found this very interesting. Thought you would too.

[Quarque]

The James Webb space telescope is about to become operational. It is a sort-of new, improved Hubble, but it is focused on the infrared part of the spectrum. Basically the best infrared camera ever made. Can't wait to see what it discovers.

[Quarque]

This is maybe a bit offtopic, but I guess this is the best place to put it.

If you had the chance to visit any, I mean any place in the solar sytem for a full Earth day, where would you choose to go? You are guaranteed to come back home unharmed, and there is no travel time, you just appear there.

Absolutely Titan. (Moon of saturn, the only moon with an atmosphere. It has a weather system with rain of liquid methane.)

[LordBaal]

If its pure magic, would love to see what's under the ice of Europe.

[Madman198237]

If its pure magic, would love to see what's under the ice of Europe.

Presumably, Europeans.

[EuchreJack]

If its pure magic, would love to see what's under the ice of Europe.

Presumably, Europeans.

Alternatively: Eurotrash 

[Loud Whispers]

Once you pierce the ice you unleash millions of years of carbonated Eurobeat

[MonkeyHead]

If its pure magic, would love to see what's under the ice of Europe.

Eurovision.

[Starver]

While we're here, you'll have heard that Russia has announced that it will[1] stop being part of the ISS as of 2026 and go off and build their own one, with blackjack and hookers...

Which will make it the fourth country to do so, after the USSR (albeit tailing off into the Russian Federation), the US and most recently China. But just like the US has had to reinvent the Apollo Program(me), they can't expect to just dust off the soviet-era stuff and get back to their full stride.


I can't see this being more than posturing, right now. They're upset that they've lost their monopoly on man-rated launches (we now have SpaceX, maybe Boeing coming up; and there's the Chinese, but already only for and by themselves) and I've no doubt that the non-Russians can quickly get some of the robotic supply missions (at least) to act as orbit-raisers if they disconnect the Mir-2 modules[2].

I'd say no real loss if they organise a proper de-docking from Unity. And, by their own admission, the ROS modules are on the edge of their design-life anyway so I can't see them drifing it off to act as the (initial) backbone for any neo-Mir they will have to start afresh with. It's probably going to happen anyway, hopefully before anything fails so critically that they can't bodge a repair in time.


(Really, there are far more physical dangers associated with human habitation in space than 'mere' political ones. Unless there's an active act of sabotage[3], I expect the end of the ISS to be pretty much a natural end of either unseen disaster or abandoned as no longer fit for purpose. Russia is no longer a necessary partner, from an engineering perspective, if diplomacy cannot keep them on board.)


[1] Well, by their rhetoric. It's going to be either an empty threat or a costly one.

[2] Zarya: Now mainly storage; Zvezda: Living/propulsion; (Pirs, then) Poisk: Russian EVA facilities; Rassvet: Cargo space/docking; Nauka: Russian laboratory; Prichal: General docking; ...all pretty much duplicated (or derussified) in every facette other than propulsion with the US/Other-nation modules and nodes, which also does the heavy lifting in the Power department.

[3] Which is probably less likely than when there are 'competing' space-habitats and some 'accidental' ASAT-like action is made upon the opposition by one or other or both beligerant parties.

[EuchreJack]

If its pure magic, would love to see what's under the ice of Europe.

Eurovision.

That sounds like the device that would be used to peer under the ice of Europa.
Although now, I like to imagine there are aliens performing Eurovision songs.

[Starver]

I like to imagine there are aliens performing Eurovision songs.

They do. Every year... Have you seen all those entries!

[MaxTheFox]

This is maybe a bit offtopic, but I guess this is the best place to put it.

If you had the chance to visit any, I mean any place in the solar sytem for a full Earth day, where would you choose to go? You are guaranteed to come back home unharmed, and there is no travel time, you just appear there.

Absolutely Titan. (Moon of saturn, the only moon with an atmosphere. It has a weather system with rain of liquid methane.)

This TBH. Or yeah, Europa.

[bloop_bleep]

Titan has smaller gravity (by ~7x) but a denser atmosphere (by ~1.5x). Which makes me wonder if you could fly there by flapping your arms hard enough.

[MonkeyHead]

Titan has smaller gravity (by ~7x) but a denser atmosphere (by ~1.5x). Which makes me wonder if you could fly there by flapping your arms hard enough.

With a few square meters of wing, yes. Though, you would get tired pretty quickly. Some Titan analogue of hang gliding would be pretty awesome.