Roscosmos facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities

Государственная корпорация по космической деятельности «Роскосмос»
Roscosmos's headquarters in Moscow, Russia.
Agency overview
Abbreviation	Roscosmos
Formed	25 February 1992; 33 years ago (1992-02-25) (as the Russian Federal Space Agency)
Preceding agency	Soviet space program (1955–1991) (In the form of Ministry of General Machine Building)
Type	Space agency
Jurisdiction	Government of Russia
Headquarters	Moscow, Russia 55°47′2″N 37°37′50″E / 55.78389°N 37.63056°E / 55.78389; 37.63056
Official language	Russian
Administrator	Yury Borisov
Primary spaceport	Baikonur Cosmodrome Vostochny Cosmodrome Plesetsk Cosmodrome
Owner	Russia
Employees	170,500 (2020)
Annual budget	154 billion₽ (2021) (US$1.92 billion)
Website	roscosmos.ru (archived)

Roscosmos is Russia's main space agency. Its full name is the Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities. This agency is in charge of all of Russia's space flights, astronaut programs, and research into space and aircraft.

Roscosmos started after the Soviet Union broke apart in 1991. It grew out of the earlier Soviet space program, which began in the 1950s. The agency was first set up on February 25, 1992, as the Russian Space Agency. Over the years, it changed its name and structure several times. In 2015, it became the Roscosmos we know today, bringing together different parts of Russia's space industry.

Roscosmos has its main office in Moscow, Russia. Its main control center for missions is nearby in Korolyov. Astronauts train at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City. Russia uses several places to launch rockets. These include the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which is the world's first and largest spaceport. Another important launch site is the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East. The current head of Roscosmos is Yury Borisov, who took over in July 2022.

Roscosmos carries on the amazing work of the Soviet space program. This includes launching the world's first satellite, sending the first human into space, and building the first space station. Today, Roscosmos is a key partner in the International Space Station (ISS). In 2019, Roscosmos announced plans for a new main building in Moscow, called the National Space Centre. Russia's astronaut team, called the Cosmonaut Corps, was the first of its kind in the world.

History of Roscosmos

Patch of the Russian Space Agency, 1991–2004

The Hall of Space Technology in the Tsiolkovsky State Museum of the History of Cosmonautics, Kaluga, Russia. This exhibit shows models of famous Russian/Soviet space inventions. These include the first satellite, Sputnik 1, and the first human spaceflight module, the Vostok 3KA.

The old Soviet space program did not have one main agency in charge. Instead, different design groups and engineers made most of the decisions. So, creating a central agency like Roscosmos after the Soviet Union ended was a new idea for Russia. The Russian Space Agency was officially formed on February 25, 1992. Yuri Koptev, who had worked on Mars landers, became its first leader.

In its early years, the agency faced many challenges. Powerful design groups wanted to keep their own control and survive. For example, the decision to keep the Mir space station working after 1999 was made by a private company, not the agency. Also, the choice to build the new Angara rocket happened because a company could get money for it, not because the agency planned it long-term.

Challenging Times

The 1990s were tough financially for the space agency. There was much less money coming in. This made the agency find new ways to keep its space programs going. They started focusing on launching satellites for other countries and even offering space tourism. Scientific missions, like probes to other planets, were not a big focus during these years. Even though the agency worked with Russia's military space forces, its budget was separate from the defense budget. Despite the money problems, the agency managed to keep the Mir space station running longer than planned. It also helped with the International Space Station and continued to fly Soyuz and Progress missions.

In 1994, Roscosmos renewed its agreement to use the Baikonur Cosmodrome with the government of Kazakhstan.

Starting Cooperation with the ISS

On October 31, 2000, a Soyuz spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome. On board were William Shepherd from NASA and cosmonauts Sergei Krikalev and Yuri Gidzenko from Roscosmos. They arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) on November 2. This moment marked the beginning of people living continuously on the orbiting lab.

Better Funding and New Missions

In March 2004, Anatoly Perminov became the new head of the agency, replacing Yuri Koptev. Russia's economy improved in 2005 due to high prices for oil and gas. This meant more money for the space program. In 2006, the Russian government approved a large budget for the Space Agency. This budget was about US$11 billion for the years 2006 to 2015. The budget for 2006 alone was about US$900 million, which was a 33% increase from 2005. The plan was for the budget to grow 5–10% each year. Roscosmos also planned to get more money from other sources, like investments from companies and commercial rocket launches.

With better funding, Roscosmos planned new science missions. These included satellites like Spektr R (launched 2011) and Spektr RG (launched 2019). They also planned to restart Bion missions, which carry living things into space. New weather satellites like Elektro L (launched 2011) were also part of the plan.

Space Program Priorities (2006–2012)

Cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov on a spacewalk in February 2012.

Even with a global economic crisis, the space budget for 2009 stayed strong at about $2.4 billion. In 2011, the government spent $3.8 billion on national space programs. A big part of Russia's space budget, up to 50%, was spent on sending humans into space, especially for the International Space Station. Some people thought this might take money away from other space exploration projects.

Important goals for the Russian space program included developing the new Angara rocket family. They also wanted to build new satellites for communication, navigation, and observing Earth. The GLONASS global navigation satellite system was a top priority. It received special funding to help it grow.

Despite more money and public support, the Russian space program still had challenges. Wages in the space industry were low, and many employees were older. Also, a lot of the equipment was old. On the bright side, many companies worked with foreign partners and earned money. New rocket parts were developed, and companies started training new engineers.

In April 2011, Vladimir Popovkin became the new head of Roscosmos. He had been a commander of the Russian Space Forces.

Reorganizing the Russian Space Industry (2013–2016)

2022 alternate logo of Roscosmos

After some rocket launch failures, like one in July 2013, Russia decided to make big changes to its space industry. In August 2013, the United Rocket and Space Corporation was created. This new company was meant to bring all the different parts of Russia's space sector together. A government official said the space industry had so many problems that it needed state control to fix them.

The government wanted to "preserve and enhance the Roscosmos space agency." More detailed plans in October 2013 aimed to bring the space industry back under government control. This included creating one main command structure and reducing duplicated efforts. This could mean many job changes. Officials noted that Russia's space sector had many more employees than the United States for similar results. They said Russian space companies were not working as efficiently as they could be.

Under the 2013 plan, Roscosmos would act as the main government body. It would be in charge of planning and overseeing space programs. In 2016, the old state agency was replaced. The Roscosmos name then moved to the new state corporation, which had been formed in 2013. Its main job was to bring the Russian space sector back under government control.

Recent Years (2017–2021)

In 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin said it was important to "drastically improve the quality and reliability of space and launch vehicles." This was to help Russia keep its strong position in space. In 2018, an audit agency reported that Roscosmos had "the highest losses" due to "irrational spending" and financial problems.

In 2020, Roscosmos decided not to join the Lunar Gateway project. This was a NASA-led project to build a space station orbiting the Moon. Roscosmos had previously agreed to join in 2017.

In March 2021, Roscosmos signed an agreement with China's space agency. They plan to work together to build a lunar base called the International Lunar Research Station. In April 2021, Roscosmos announced it would leave the International Space Station program after 2024. Instead, Russia plans to build its own new space station, called the Russian Orbital Service Station, starting in 2025.

In June 2021, the head of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin, said that international rules put on Russia were hurting the agency. In September 2021, Roscosmos reported financial losses for 2020. This was due to less money from foreign contracts and higher costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic. In October, Roscosmos even paused rocket engine tests for a month. They did this to send oxygen to hospitals during the pandemic.

Roscosmos Today (2022-present)

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Roscosmos has continued its launches. They launched 9 rockets in 2022 and 7 in the first half of 2023.

In early March 2022, Roscosmos stopped its work at the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana. This was a response to international rules placed on Russia. Roscosmos also said it would stop sending RD-181 rocket engines to the United States. These engines are used for the Antares rocket, which delivers cargo to space.

In late March 2022, the European Space Agency (ESA) stopped working with Roscosmos on the ExoMars rover mission because of the conflict. Also, the British satellite company OneWeb signed new contracts with other space companies. This happened after disagreements with Roscosmos, which used to launch their satellites.

In May 2022, Dmitry Rogozin announced that Roscosmos would end its involvement with the International Space Station. This followed earlier announcements about stopping cooperation on scientific experiments. However, Rogozin was removed from his position in July 2022. Yury Borisov took over and seemed to improve relations with the ISS partners, especially NASA.

The global market for launching things into space is growing. Experts believe Roscosmos's share of this market might shrink. This is because new space companies and other countries like Japan and India are becoming more active. In June 2023, Roscosmos took part in a campaign to recruit volunteers for a military group. In October 2023, Borisov said Roscosmos needs a lot of money to build the new Russian space station. In February 2024, Roscosmos announced significant losses in export money. This was mainly from selling engines and launch services, due to international issues.

Future Plans

From 2024 onwards, the main office of Roscosmos will be in the new National Space Center. This center is located in the Fili district of Moscow.

Current Space Programs

Working with the International Space Station

The Zarya module was the first part of the ISS, launched in 1998.

Roscosmos is a key partner in the International Space Station program. It provided important parts of the station, like the Zarya and Zvezda modules. These were launched by Proton rockets. Later, NASA's Unity Module joined them. The Rassvet module is used for storing cargo and as a place for visiting spacecraft to dock. The Nauka module was the last planned major part of the ISS. It was attached to the station in July 2021.

Roscosmos is responsible for sending astronaut crews to the ISS using Soyuz-TMA spacecraft. It also sends supplies to the station with Progress cargo ships. After the first agreement with NASA ended, Roscosmos continued to sell seats on Soyuz spacecraft to NASA. They also provided Progress transport flights. Roscosmos planned to double the number of Soyuz and Progress flights each year starting in 2008.

Roscosmos has also offered space tourism for people who pay to visit the ISS through the Space Adventures company. By 2009, six space tourists had flown into space, each paying a large fee. Working together on ISS missions has faced challenges due to recent international events. However, supply missions continued in 2022 and 2023.

Scientific Missions

Roscosmos runs several programs for studying Earth, communication, and scientific research on the International Space Station. As of 2024, Roscosmos operates one science satellite called Spektr-RG. It does not have any active probes exploring other planets right now.

Future plans include a new spacecraft to replace the Soyuz. They also plan robotic science missions to one of Mars' moons. There will also be more satellites studying the Moon, like Luna-Glob.

• Luna-Glob includes Moon orbiters and landers. The Luna 25 mission launched in 2023 but crashed on the Moon.
• Venera-D is a Venus lander, planned for 2029.
• Fobos-Grunt was a Mars mission that failed in 2011.
• Mars 96 was another Mars mission that failed in 1996.

Rockets

Roscosmos uses several types of rockets to launch things into space. The most famous is the Soyuz rocket. It can launch about 7.5 tons into low Earth orbit (LEO). The Proton rocket can lift over 20 tons to LEO. There are also smaller rockets like Rokot.

Currently, Roscosmos is working on a new rocket system called Angara. They are also improving the Soyuz rocket with new versions like Soyuz-2 and Soyuz-2-3. Two improved Soyuz versions, Soyuz-2.1a and Soyuz-2.1b, have already been successfully tested. These can launch up to 8.5 tons to LEO.

Operational Rockets

Rockets in Development

New Piloted Spacecraft

One project that got a lot of attention in 2005 was Kliper. This was a small, reusable spacecraft designed to carry people. Roscosmos asked other space agencies like ESA and JAXA to help pay for its development. However, the Kliper program was stopped in July 2006. It was replaced by a new project called Orel. As of 2023, no Orel crafts have been launched yet.

Space Systems

The Galenki RT-70 radio telescope is one of the largest single dish radio telescopes in the world.

"Resurs-P" is a series of Russian satellites that observe Earth. They can take very clear pictures from space. Roscosmos uses these satellites to replace older ones.

Russia is also creating a space system called "Arctic." This system will use "Arktika-M" spacecraft to help with weather and water monitoring in the Arctic region. In the future, it might also include communication and radar satellites.

Plans also include launching "Obzor-R" satellites for Earth observation. These will use radar. Four "Obzor-O" spacecraft will also be launched to take pictures of Earth's surface in regular and infrared light.

Gonets is a system of civilian communication satellites that orbit close to Earth. In 2016, this system had 13 satellites.

Suffa Space Observatory

In 2018, Russia agreed to help build the Suffa observatory in Uzbekistan. This observatory started in 1991 but stopped construction after the Soviet Union ended.

Gecko Mating Experiment

On July 19, 2014, Roscosmos launched the Foton-M4 satellite. It carried animals and plants, including five geckos. The geckos were part of a research project called Gecko-F4. Scientists wanted to see how weightlessness affected the geckos' ability to have babies and grow. Soon after the spacecraft left Earth, mission control lost contact with it. They later got communication back. The mission was supposed to last two months but was cut short to 44 days. When the satellite returned to Earth, all the geckos had died during the flight.

Scientists are not sure exactly why the geckos died. Reports suggest the lizards had been dead for at least a week before returning to Earth. Some people involved in the mission think a problem with the spacecraft's heating system might have caused the cold-blooded reptiles to freeze. Other animals on the mission, like fruit flies, plants, and mushrooms, all survived.

Launch Control

The Russian Space Forces is the military part of Russia's space operations. It has similar goals to the United States Space Force. This Russian military branch was formed in 2015. The Space Forces control Russia's Plesetsk Cosmodrome launch site. Roscosmos and the Space Forces share control of the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Roscosmos pays the military for the flight controllers during civilian launches there. They also share control of the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Russia is also building another spaceport in Tsiolkovsky, Amur Oblast, called the Vostochny Cosmodrome. It launched its first rocket in 2016 and was planned to be finished by 2018.

Subsidiaries

As of 2017, Roscosmos had many companies working under it. These include:

Images for kids

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  Roscosmos logo

See also

In Spanish: Roscosmos para niños

• American space program
• Russian space industry
• List of government space agencies