The Russian government’s decision to discontinue the use of the aging space station Mir is timely and proper, Yuri Koptev, director general of the Russian Aerospace Agency, told Interfax in Paris on Monday.
“The station is worn out. Crudely speaking, it is rusted through, so its continued use is dangerous as well as uneconomical,” Koptev said. He is a member of President Vladimir Putin’s delegation to the EU- Russia summit in Paris. Discussions in the course of Putin’s time in the French capital will address the potential for cooperation in space research.
Mir will most probably be crash-landed out in the deeps of the Pacific Ocean, fairly far from Australia, Koptev said. This is most likely to happen in February 2001, when Mir turns fifteen, he said. “Everything comes to an end.”
Russian cosmonauts will fly up to the station to prepare it for its final journey if need be, he added.
Russia must concentrate its efforts and resources on the building of the International Space Station, Koptev said. “There is considerable interest, in particular from the French, in our segment of the station.”
The Russian aerospace program is still strong and widely respected, Koptev continued. “This is the reason for the increasing international business activity in this field. I have come in Paris after promising talks in Germany and will fly on from here to Beijing,” he said.
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