Russia may build its own space station after 2020

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Russia may build its own space station with International Space Station (ISS) units after 2020 if the ISS partners choose not to extend the project and there is political will to do so, a source from the national space industry said on Monday.

"A new orbital station of Russia is under consideration. Apart from doing research, it will assemble interplanetary expedition complexes for missions to the Moon, Mars and Lagrangian points," he said.

The Multirole Laboratory Module (MLM) is supposed to be connected to the ISS in 2014 although "the project has been experiencing certain problems," he said.

"This is a landmark module for Russia's manned program."

"We will create a node unit with a service life of 30 years in 2014-2015. The MLM, two research and power modules, the node and, possibly, the ISS service module will make up a national orbital station to operate during the period from 2020 until 2040," the source said.

"The prospective manned spaceship [on which the Energia Corporation is working] will have a trial unmanned mission by 2020," he added.

Voice of Russia

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Russia may build its own space station after 2020

Look! A great week to view Space Station

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It was as bright as the brightest star in the sky Tuesday night. The International Space Station (ISS) made a prime pass right over the Midwest Tuesday evening.

The pass began in the southwest sky, allowing you to see the planet Venus nearby. The ISS is just as bright when you are viewing.

How will you tell the difference? Venus won't be speeding across the sky at warp speed. The bright MOVING object is the Space Station. It takes about 5 minutes to reach its peak in the night sky directly above you. Soon after that, the ISS moves out of the light and fades very quickly.

Didn't see the show Tuesday? Don't worry. The Space Station makes more passes across Kansas and Missouri this week.

Thursday evening will provide another show. That will begin at 7:28 p.m. with the satellite appearing in the southwest sky. It will then skirt across the sky before fading at 7:34 p.m. in the northeast sky.

On Friday, the ISS pass begins at 8:19 p.m. in the northwest sky. The pass will end 2 minutes later in the north sky.

Another VERY BRIGHT viewing opportunity occurs this Saturday. The satellite will first appear around 7:31 p.m. in the northwest west sky. it will travel directly overhead and then fade in the northeast sky at 7:35 p.m.. Enjoy!

For more information on viewing times in our area, visit http://1.usa.gov/19oeiiU.

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Look! A great week to view Space Station

Cygnus Spacecraft's Cargo Unloaded by Space Station Astronauts

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Cargo delivered to the International Space Station by Orbital Sciences' Cygnus spacecraft is now completely unloaded from the commercial resupply ship and aboard the orbiting laboratory.

Astronauts on the space station opened Cygnus' hatch on Sept. 30 after its historic first launch atop an Antares rocket from NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility on Sept. 18. After launch, mission controllers on the ground took Cygnus through a variety of test maneuvers before it was allowed to approach the station.

Once the supply ship leaves the station, it is designed burn up in Earth's atmosphere. International Space Station crewmembers have now loaded a layer of trash onto Cygnus. "The crew will be working this week loading the second layer of trash," Orbital Sciences officials wrote in a mission update on Oct. 7. The third layer will be loaded the week of Oct. 14, and the capsule is set to leave the station on Oct. 22, re-entering the atmosphere on Oct. 24, Orbital officials said.

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Cygnus Spacecraft's Cargo Unloaded by Space Station Astronauts

‘Non-Furloughed’ NASA Spacecrafts See Sun Hurl Giant Prominence | Video – Video

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#39;Non-Furloughed #39; NASA Spacecrafts See Sun Hurl Giant Prominence | Video
NASA #39;s SDO and SOHO websites continue to be automatically updated during the government shutdown (with a disclaimer stating the data may not be up to date.) ...

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'Non-Furloughed' NASA Spacecrafts See Sun Hurl Giant Prominence | Video - Video

Juno Spacecraft Earth Flyby October 9th, 2013 – NASA Eyes on the Solar System – Video

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Juno Spacecraft Earth Flyby October 9th, 2013 - NASA Eyes on the Solar System
Juno, the NASA robotic mission to study Jupiter, is making a close fly-by of Earth on Wednesday, October 9th, 2013 at 19:22GMT, a few hours from when this vi...

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Juno Spacecraft Earth Flyby October 9th, 2013 - NASA Eyes on the Solar System - Video