Space exploration in 2011

For missions in 2010 click here

PLANNED RUSSIAN SPACE MISSIONS IN 2011:

Early 2011: A Proton M with Birz M upper stage to launch the EuropaSat communications satellite for Inmarsat. Thales Alenia Space of France is developing satellite, using its Spacebus 4000C3 platform. The spacecraft working in S-band mode will provide mobile broadcast and two-way telecommunications services throughout Europe. The spacecraft will have a mass of about 5,700 kilograms. The contract for the mission was announced on August 22, 2008.

2010-2011: Russia to launch the Luna-Glob mission into the lunar orbit. The spacecraft is scheduled to release Japanese "penetrators" onto the lunar surface.

End of 2010-beginning of 2011: The Angara-1.2 (light version) to fly its first test mission from Plesetsk with a dummy payload. (Delayed from 1990s)

2011: India to launch a Chandrayaan-II lunar lander, which would carry a 400-kilogram rover built in Russia. (As of 2007)

2011: A Soyuz-2/Fregat rocket to launch Spektr-RG (Spektr-Rentgen-Gamma), an X-Ray observatory from Baikonur in a 600-kilometer orbit. (As of 2008. In 2004, the launch was promised in 2006, then delayed to the end of 2007 and 2008)

2011: A Proton rocket to launch the FGB-2/MLM multi-purpose module to the International Space Station, ISS. (In 2001, the launch was promised in 2007). The spacecraft is to be docked to the nadir port of the Zvezda service module.

Second half of 2011: The Angara-5 rocket (heavy version) equipped with Briz-M upper stage to fly a test mission from Plesetsk.

2011: Russia to launch Arkon-2 No. 1 radar remote-sensing satellite. (As of 2008, 299)

2011: Sea Launch's Zenit-3SL rocket to deliver second batch of eight satellites for O3b Networks Limited for Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) telecommunications satellite constellation. Sea Launch announced the agreement on Sept. 23, 2008.

Manned missions

Four missions of the Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS to support permanent manned operations onboard the station. A fifth "commercial" mission to carry two space tourists was announced by a US-based contractor on June 11, 2008, but not confirmed by Russian sources, as of June 12, 2008.

Russia denies claims of future "tourist missions"

Published: 2008 June 12; updated June 20; July 2; 2009 Jan. 23

The Russian space boss flatly denied an announcement by US businessmen about the possibility of another tourist mission to the ISS.

On June 11, 2008, a private contractor selling seats onboard the Russian Soyuz spacecraft claimed that it would finance a dedicated tourist mission to the International Space Station, ISS, in 2011. The Soyuz flight, carrying one professional cosmonaut and two paid tourists, would be conducted in addition to regular launches financed by the Russian government. In the past, Russian authorities only allowed tourists to take a single seat onboard taxpayers' paid missions, to offset the cost of the cash-strapped Russian space program. However with the station construction nearly completed and its long-duration crew scheduled to increase from three to six, the regular Soyuz missions would have no seats available for paid passengers.

Although popular Western press hailed the latest claims about the dedicated tourist space mission as a new breakthrough in orbital commerce, the head of the Russian space agency, Roskosmos, Anatoly Perminov said he had no information of such plans. In the official statement published on the agency's web site, Perminov said that "there is simply no seats for space tourists." Possibly, he referred to already scheduled missions, rather than a dedicated commercial flight. As of June 12, RKK Energia, a Russian company, which builds and operates the Soyuz spacecraft, neither confirmed or denied claims made by its US-based salesmen. At the very least, the situation indicated a breakdown of communications between the Russian space agency, its main contractor and its overseas sales representatives.

Even if such mission does take place, skeptics believe that "private investors" would still use Russian taxpayers' money to pay for the full infrastructure of the manned space flight, including the spacecraft, its rocket booster, the network of ground control stations and other services. Observers also point out a potential minefield "commercial" missions present for relations between space station partners. Even though Russia does not publicly disclose amounts it charges its private clients for joy rides in space, these rates are apparently lower than those paid by NASA and other space station partners for transporting their crew members to the ISS.

In 2011, Russia plans to conduct four manned missions of the Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS to support permanent occupation of the outpost by rotating international crews. The additional tourist mission would mean five manned launches that year. Currently, Russia conducts two manned missions annually, however in 1980, six piloted Soyuz spacecraft lifted off to support Salyut-6 orbital station.

On Friday, commenting on the situation, Yuri Makushenko, Director of Business Development at RKK Energia told RussianSpaceWeb.com that "the door to the fifth (additional) Soyuz launch in 2011 or 2012 is not closed provided necessary funding." Makushenko said that such option was evaluated at RKK Energia, however the project was at the very initial stage and no actual production work on the Soyuz ship for the fifth mission in 2011 had taken place. He explained the contradictory statements by Roskosmos as possible misunderstanding.

Only on July 2, 2008, Roskosmos finally confirmed that an agreement with an unnamed private investor had been reached to start funding the construction of a dedicated spacecraft for a possible tourist mission in 2011. Terms of the agreement with the investor envisioned further tourists flights beyond 2011, the agency said. However in the January 2009 interview, (321) head of Roskosmos Anatoly Perminov, yet again, reiterated that Russian "tourist missions" to the ISS would end in 2009. And yet again, Perminov failed to mention any dedicated private Soyuz missions.

For missions in 2012 click here

Compiled and maintained by Anatoly Zak

Last update: January 23, 2009