The Russian space agency wants to bring back three astronauts stuck on the ISS in February. However, the rescue flight is canceled due to problems and a new start is planned for early March. The astronauts are supposed to stay in space for months anyway.
The Russian space agency Roskosmos does not want to bring three astronauts stuck on the international space station ISS back to earth until autumn – one year after their departure. According to the current status, the return flight with the Soyuz MS-23 is planned for September, announced Roskosmos.
The Russian cosmonauts Sergei Prokopjew and Dmitri Petelin and their US colleague Frank Rubio were originally supposed to fly back to Earth in February in a Soyuz MS-22. After a leak was discovered in the spacecraft’s cooling system, it was decided to pick up the astronauts stationed on the ISS with the Soyuz MS-23 instead. According to Roskosmos, this is now supposed to start next Friday from the cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan, but it will not return to Earth until September, exactly one year after the astronauts arrived on the ISS. According to Roskosmos, the astronauts have responded “positively” to the extension of their mission, and the longer stay in space does not pose a risk to their health.
Theoretically, another spacecraft is available to transport the crew back from the ISS. At the end of January, the US space agency NASA selected a “Crew Dragon” docked at the ISS as a temporary emergency spacecraft. This was decided after discussions with its operator SpaceX, Elon Musk’s private space company, in the event of an unforeseen emergency, NASA said at a press conference. The “Crew Dragon” spacecraft has a capacity of up to seven people and, according to SpaceX, is the first private vehicle to bring people to the ISS. It can also transport cargo.
