There was a posting at NASASpaceflight.com with a link to some NASA PDF documents, the one of interest to me being a huge publication about the ISS – a 182 MB download. I did download it (yay for broadband!) and it is worth it! Lots of technical diagrams of all components (including diagrams of the insides of the Russian modules, which I have been wanting for years). The download page is here at the NASA Technical Reports Server. It seems to be the same book (SP-2006-557) mentioned in postings at CollectSPACE and NASASpaceflight.com.
Unfortunately a LOT of computer memory/RAM is needed to open and view it – my 512 MB is barely adequate and the PDF slows my computer down so much after a while it is almost unusable! I did manage to view most of it, but what a struggle! Looks like I will have to add more memory sometime this year. They should have divided the document into several small PDF files.
[Update: you can download the document in separate PDF chapters at Spaceref.]
There is an interview with cosmonaut Pavel Vinogradov in Novosti Kosmonavtiki magazine №1 2007 (issue 288), in Russian: «Рассказывает командир МКС-13 Павел Виноградов» (“ISS-13 commander Pavel Vinogradov tells”), in November 2006. Near the end of the interview he makes it clear he is not happy with the current state of the Cosmonaut Group and the Russian space program, which can be summed up as moribund. Actually he echoes much of what I have been saying. I could not make sense of parts of the computer translation (my Russian is very poor anyway), so I will paraphrase most of what he said:
There is nothing for the new cosmonauts to fly as all the third seats are sold to foreigners; he does not understand Roskosmos’ policy on this at all. It is a worthless policy. The tourist flights could be delayed until they could build extra Soyuzes and fly them up on short visiting missions. He feels that the Russian manned space program is at a dead end. The agreement with the Americans to provide six crew places at the Station means that the required Soyuzes are being build now, and at NASA’s insistence they are the older versions as they do not wish to fly in the modified ship. When the Americans begin constructing their new Orion ship, Russia will be stuck with their old ships and not be neccessary to anybody.
Roskosmos does not support Energiya’s initiative to update the Soyuz, or create a new transport system and the Klipper.
Now we try to assemble crews from inexperienced cosmonauts. Yurchikhin will fly with Kotov. Feodor, though he flew on a shuttle, practically did not see our segment and he will be the Expedition commander. The next crew: Sergei Volkov has spent about 10 years in the group. Of them, only Lonchakov has flown. It seems to me that it is necessary to change the system of general preparation of cosmonauts, and for this purpose there must be more funding. What is now happening at TsPK is incomprehensible. Simply unbelievable! It has completely ruined our preparation! The people who could train as cosmonauts are simply not present! Thank God, the old men are still going... It is all different and all bad. And it is no better at Energiya. I had the impression, that at Energiya the majority works to work, instead of for the sake of results. Nothing advances. No ideology, which, of course, should motivate Roscosmos. When the MOM (Мinistry of General Мachine Building) existed, everything was clear. Now, as weeds from under asphalt, ideas make their way from the bottom and are cut off at the roots...
There are no cosmonauts in any management positions of the piloted program to represent those in the Cosmonaut Group. In comparison, NASA has astronaut representatives in six out of eight posts in their management.
In the previous six months of 2006, the relations between Roskosmos and Energiya took a turn for the worse. N.N. Sevastyanov, whom A.N. Perminov at first supported, broke away and refused to support the Roskosmos program.
In five to six years the Americans will tell us “good-bye”. In fact they now tolerate us only because they need the time in order to create the “Orion”. Then we will be left with our 40-year-old Soyuz... Everything, all is absolute the astronauts who flew on the Soyuz, say: “It is so primitive!” For them it is a shock. And they are not simple people – among them are many test pilots who have flown a lot, so they have much to compare the Soyuz to. Jeff, when he was pulled out from the Descent Module, remarked: “This is a soft landing? What is a hard one?” [Laughs]
In comparison, in Soviet times there was a space strategy and a State policy. Many of the Russian experiments date from Salyut and Mir and it is not clear what they are advancing. Funding for the experiments is inadequate. Over half of crew time is spent on Station maintenance, in any case.
In general the situation is pitiable. It seems to me, it is necessary to develop as soon as possible a strategy of piloted space, to create cooperation throughout the industry and science, to make appropriate adjustments in the unambitious space program of Russia and to achieve state financing.
Given all this, it is hardly surprising that cosmonauts are retiring!
[Another translation is at FPSpace.]
