Many of Russia鈥檚 military satellites may be too old to be considered reliable, according to the head of Russia鈥檚 space and aviation agency.
Yuri Koptev, chief of Russia鈥檚 RosAviaKosmos, told members of parliament that 68 of the country鈥檚 90 orbiting satellites were at the end, or near the end, of their operational life.
This includes 43 military satellites, most of which perform reconnaissance work or form part of the country鈥檚 military early warning system. 鈥淭here is a real chance that we will no longer be operational in this regard,鈥� Koptev said.
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In May, a fire at one of Russia鈥檚 satellite ground-based relay stations broke communications with four military satellites. Experts warned that the incident highlighted the rundown state of Russia鈥檚 satellite network. They said that the situation could even cause false alarms of incoming missiles, which could trigger retaliation (快猫短视频, 19 May 2001, p 6).
Nuclear warning
Some of the hardware that Russia has in space is 20 to 30 year olds. Bhupendra Jasani of the War Studies department at King鈥檚 College, London says that malfunctions will inevitably become more common as these satellites get older. 鈥淚t will get worse unless they get some resources,鈥� he told 快猫短视频. 鈥淢y guess is that they will find the resources, because otherwise they will be in trouble.鈥�
Since the demise of the Soviet Union, spending on Russia鈥檚 space programme has reduced dramatically. Whereas 0.79 per cent of the country鈥檚 gross national product went towards space in 1989, just 0.12 per cent was spent on the sector last year.
Koptev criticised the amount of money that the Russian government has set aside for space over the next year. He pointed out that Russia plans to spend 拢142 million this year, while the rest of Europe is set to spend 拢2.1 billion.
He also told members of parliament that launching another space station to replace Mir was out of the question. 鈥淥nly if the economic situation changes could we begin to think about it,鈥� he said.
Related stories:
Russian early warning system in decay (19/05/2001)
Russia loses contact with four military satellites (10/05/2001)
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