MOSCOW (Roscosmos PR) — On January 25, 2022, Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin spoke about promising projects Roscosmos and its subsidiaries at Academic readings on cosmonautics (Korolev’s Readings 2022).

SWINDON, UK (UK Space Agency PR) — The UK-built ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover is set for launch in September after a series of successful tests, including driving off its landing platform.

The European Space Agency (ESA) rover starts the year with months of successful maintenance and functional tests behind it. All its instruments are go for flight, with some minor tuning left to complete this month.

MOSCOW (Roscosmos PR) — Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin spoke about promising projects in the Russian rocket and space industry during his December 3, 2021 speech at the First ‘Space Integration’ Business Forum of the Eurasian Economic Union.

On the Angara-1.2 light carrier rocket launch timing
‘We will launch the light Angara in the first half of the next year.’

On modernization of the Zenit launch complex for the prospective Soyuz-5 rocket (Baiterek space rocket complex)
‘Physical work on the Baiterek complex will begin in March next year. All necessary documents have been agreed upon.’

On the first launch of the Soyuz-5 rocket
‘The rocket (Soyuz-5) will be able to fly in December 2023.’

by Douglas Messier
Managing Editor

Russia recently marked the 25th anniversary of the entry of the Proton rocket into the international commercial marketplace. On April 8, 1996, a Proton-K booster with a DM3 upper stage launched the Astra 1F geosynchronous communications satellite built by U.S.-based Hughes for Luxembourg’s SES from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

SWINDON, UK (UK Space Agency PR) — After a seven-month journey, NASA’s car-sized Mars Perseverance rover will make its final descent to the Red Planet to begin its search for traces of life.

The rover’s mission – backed by the UK government – is to explore and collect samples for future return to Earth from diverse ancient environments on Mars. Supported by over £400,000 in funds from the UK Space Agency, researchers at Imperial College London and the Natural History Museum will help to decide which samples are sent to Earth in a search for evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars.

• On 18 February, NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover will land on the Red Planet
• ESA’s Mars orbiters – the ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and Mars Express – are supporting the landing
• TGO will relay important data from Perseverance to Earth as soon as four hours after landing
• Mars Express is monitoring the local conditions at the landing site, Jezero Crater
• Both ESA orbiters are providing context images of the region
• TGO will attempt to image the rover in the weeks after landing

NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is due to land on the Red Planet at 21:43 CET on 18 February 2021. In order to communicate with Earth from its landing site in Jezero Crater, the rover will rely on spacecraft orbiting Mars to relay the images and other data it collects back to Earth and pass on the commands from engineers beamed across space in the other direction.

MOSCOW (Roscosmos PR) — The outgoing year 2020 has become a difficult test for the entire world marked by the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Many world economic players have encountered objective difficulties in the implementation of previously outlined plans.

Unfortunately, Roscosmos also had to correct a number of plans, including those related to launch activities. Nevertheless, Roscosmos management put the quality of production and the safety of personnel working at the Russian rocket and space industry enterprises and cosmodromes at the forefront.

SWINDON, UK (UK Space Agency PR) — The two parachutes that will safely deliver the UK’s first ever Mars vehicle to the Red Planet have completed their first full-scale high altitude drop test.

TOULOUSE, France (ESA PR) — The second ExoMars mission, scheduled for launch to the Red Planet in 2022, is taking advantage of the extra time to upgrade some of the rover’s instruments and get ready for the next parachute high-altitude drop tests.

The new launch date on the horizon is allowing more margin for replacements and repairs to the ExoMars  Rosalind Franklin rover.

PARIS (ESA PR) — The European Space Agency (ESA) and the Roscosmos Space Corporation have decided to postpone the launch of the second ExoMars mission to study the Red Planet to 2022.

The joint ESA-Roscosmos project team evaluated all the activities needed for an authorisation to launch, in order to analyse the risks and schedule. With due consideration of the recommendations provided by European and Russian Inspectors General, ExoMars experts have concluded that tests necessary to make all components of the spacecraft fit for the Mars adventure need more time to complete.