Russia will begin work on its own mission to Mars as the European Space Agency (ESA) put a joint project on hold after Russian troops invaded Ukraine, a senior official said on Friday, according to the agency. Interfax news.
ESA announced on Thursday that it would be impossible to continue cooperating with Russia on the ExoMars mission. A Russian rocket would transport a European-made space exploration vehicle to Mars this year.
“In the very near future, we will start work on implementing a mission to Mars,” said Dmitry Rogozin, head of Roskosmos, Russia’s space agency.
According to Interfax, he stated that he did not think a space exploration vehicle would be necessary, as the existing Russian lander designed to carry the vehicle would be capable of carrying out the necessary scientific work.
Rogozin said there were “great doubts” about what ESA could do without Russia, which already has a rocket, launch site and lander. ESA would need at least six years to develop its own module, he said.
In response to Western-imposed sanctions on Russia, Roskosmos suspended cooperation with Europe on space launches and announced that it would no longer supply rocket engines to the United States.
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