In connection with the new space exploration programs that the Russian government has planned for the near future, Anatoly Perminov addressed the members of the Federation Council. The head of Roscosmos informed about the current state of the industry and the prospects for its development in the current decade.
In his speech, Perminov criticized not only the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, but also its head, Mr. Kudrin. The head of the Federal Space Agency on the work of the Ministry of Finance said the following: “Today we are conquering markets only through our technologies in the field of space exploration, the policy followed by the Ministry of Finance does not allow us to fully implement projects to conquer new foreign markets. We need to look up to China. In this country, a specific task has been set: to occupy all markets in Asia and South America in five years, and to invest in these promising markets on the basis of a financial component, Beijing has set a task, even despite the obvious damage to the national economy. In conquering markets, the main factor of victory is the financial component. Today we are cooperating with Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Cuba. We will create spacecraft with these countries”.
According to Perminov, Russia will gradually move away from the use of heavy launch vehicles "Proton", which operate on poisonous fuel. But this will happen only if the new "Angara" launch vehicle passes flight tests successfully. The "Angara" launch vehicle uses environmentally friendly fuel. Its first launch is scheduled for 2013.
According to the head of Roscosmos, the leading space powers have not yet found components that could provide the same thrust as the fuel that Proton runs on. “All over the world, demethylhydrazine and its various variations, TG-02, are used as fuel in heavy rockets. There are no other compromise components. The entire world continues to operate these heavy missiles. If we abandon the Proton rocket, we will get a complete halt in launches of dual and military vehicles, and commercial launches will be reduced by 50 percent, said Anatoly Perminov.
In his report to the Russian senators, Anatoly Perminov also touched upon the prospects for the development and testing of the new Russian spacecraft "Rus". In particular, he pointed out the following: “At least fifteen accident-free test launches in unmanned mode will be required. After a thorough analysis, a decision will be made to send the crew. " Unmanned test flights can take at least two years. The first launch of the Rus rocket from the Vostochny cosmodrome will be carried out in 2015, and the launch with a crew in 2018. The head of the Russian space agency also said that after the completion of construction, the Vostochny cosmodrome will be operated for some time in parallel with the existing Baikonur and Plesetsk.
Anatoly Perminov is confident that the expedition to Mars will become a reality in a quarter of a century. “Of course, it is necessary to prepare for the flight. This is a long and gradual process. But we have nothing to fly yet. It is absurd to fly to Mars on those spaceships and engines that are operated in our country today,”said the head of Roscosmos. “The point is that we need to build a new ship with a completely changed nuclear installation with a megawatt class capacity, and only then can we fly to Mars. Taking into account the use of new engines, the flight will take about a month, but this is realistic only after 2035. All this empty and absurd talk - like I agree to a one-way flight, just let me go to Mars - is just nonsense. What will be the result for science from such a flight? Obviously, none,”said the head of Roscosmos.
The United States has asked Russia for new supplies of domestic rocket engines for the American industry, Anatoly Perminov said, and also added: "Now they have come up with a proposal to purchase a different type of rocket engine." In particular, the head of Roscosmos recalled that one of the RD-180 engines is already being supplied to the United States, which is produced in Russia and is used in Atlas rockets.
The Deputy Head of Roscosmos Vitaly Davydov also spoke at the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, who told the senators about the results of testing the Bulava strategic sea missile. In particular, he said: “It would seem that the difficult period of Bulava was left behind, we have now eliminated the shortcomings that were, and, in general, with some confidence we share the optimism of the developers, in the sense that the work will be completed”.
The problems identified during the tests were solved thanks to measures of state support. For the most part, the approval of the defense industry development program contributed. The budget reserved the necessary funds to finance the started projects, including the allocation of funds for the preparation of production, which is associated with the "Bulava".
Vitaly Davydov noted that rocket and space technology is one of the priorities in the adopted State Armament Program-2020, funding for it has been increased, and this gives confidence in the development of space exploration in the future.
