Energia Reveals New Russian Spacecraft

colonist writes "Russian space officials unveiled a full-scale model of the Kliper spaceship. If funding is provided, Kliper will replace the Soyuz space capsule as Russia's human space vehicle. The spaceship, designed by RKK Energia, is twice the size of the Soyuz and will carry a crew of six. It has two main parts: a reusable re-entry craft with a lifting body design, and an orbital module. Like the Soyuz, it has a rocket to pull the spaceship away from the launch vehicle in an emergency. See this photo gallery, Encyclopedia Astronautica and RussianSpaceWeb.com."

Comments

The US's Space Program

[Icarus1919]

There is nothing more depressing to me than listening to how other industrial countries' space programs are flourishing while ours stagnates. It's as if America has lost its sense of humanity. It doesn't even really care about exploration anymore. Or apparently anything. All it wants to do is consume. Sigh....

Re:The US's Space Program

[ravenspear]

There is nothing more depressing to me than listening to how other industrial countries' space programs are flourishing while ours stagnates.

Especially considering that Russia has a mere fraction of the money available to us.

Re:The US's Space Program

[Moridineas]

Wow, are you just deliberately being anti-NASA or do you not know what's going on?

Has the shuttle program been all it was cracked up to be? Probably not. But it does give us signifigant capabilities that other "industrial countries' space programs" still don't have.

Know any other countries that could send not one, but two different robotic rovers to Mars and control them for over a year?

Hell, for that matter, just which other industrial countries are even doing anything in space right now? Ok, Russia--let's see if they find the funds to put these things in use. China--ok, China is using borrowed Russian tech to get where we were 40 years ago. True they do show more nationalistic pride in space endeavours, but then again so did we--40 years ago.

I'm not a NASA apologist--I for one think the future of space exploration will be best served by private hands...but we're not there yet. I don't see the point of bemoaning how far behind we are, when no one actually competes with us anymore (Russians simply don't have the cash anymore).

Re:The US's Space Program

[rob_squared]

And in 5-10 years, when China gets to where we were, 30-35 years ago, they'll be tied with us today. Getting to the moon and the shuttle program have made us very complacent with manned space flight. China wants to actually DO something when they get to the moon, more than just plant a flag, collect some rocks, and shoot some pictures.

I love NASA, I really do, but they and the government as a whole need to set some long term plans, and a way to carry them out.

Space Race

[RetroGeek]

And the race is on.

Again...

Maybe this time it will have some staying power. Na, the US government critters cannot see past the next election :-(

Earth to NASA.

[joshv]

This is the sort of thing NASA should have been working on decades ago. Instead we have the shuttle debacle, and a NASA that is still trying to pretend that the shuttle program is viable.

Re:Incremental progress?

[drinkypoo]

From what I understand, the color scheme is pretty much mandatory. The black side radiates heat, and the white side reflects it; it's a matter of temperature management.

Re:I Agree

[cmowire]

The problem with half of the possible shuttle missions was that they were presupposed upon the shuttle launching every week.

Repairing a satelite doesn't make sense when the repair mission costs more than a replacement satelite.

So this design makes sense until you get launch costs down. But that's OK, because if you got launch costs down enough, spacecraft construction will be a booming business.