Global economic problems have been obstructing the space powers' efforts to forge a program for future human spaceflights.
Alexei Krasnov, the chief of the federal space agency Roscosmos’s human spaceflights programs, announced this on Jan. 5.
"Talks have been uneasy thus far. You can see what is going on in the world economy. Such programs require a government-approved funding, which is the most difficult goal for all of us. It is very difficult to give the go-ahead to billions in funding required to accomplish flights beyond low orbits amid such serious economic instability. We have not forged a final decision yet," he said.
However, an international working group has worked out a universal space exploration roadmap in an effort that involved not only the partner nations in the International Space Station project (ISS) – Russia, the United States, Canada, Japan and the European Space Agency, but also China, India, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and other countries. "This is not merely an ISS club, but a broader project," Krasnov said.
The roadmap envisions three main tracks: preparations for a manned expedition to Mars, a flight to Mars after a journey to the Moon, and a flight to Mars after reaching an asteroid, he continued. "Which of them will be chosen has yet to be decided," he said.
Asked which of the three options is favored by Russia, he said any of the three would suit Roscosmos. "Our position is that the Moon could be an intermediate point for testing new know-how and new approaches to human spaceflights, and only afterwards could a step be made towards Mars. But our goal is Mars," Krasnov said.
