From left: NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren, cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) pose for a picture at the Gagarin cosmonaut training center outside Moscow on Thursday. The three are scheduled to be part of the expedition to the International Space Station (ISS) that will launch on May 26.
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KnowBetter
This picture gives hope that if we could all just learn to stop fighting and killing each other, all that money could go to feeding everyone and exploring ways to make life on earth and beyond better for all on earth. Yeah, I am currently wearing those rose coloured sunglasses as I make my way to work. ;)
harvey pekar
I don't know, maybe the UN should be moved to the International Space Station because when countries who have longstanding feuds send their spacemen to the Station, they all seem to work together in harmony and respect one another.
Maybe it's the air in the Station, clears the mind, but I'd love to hear more stories about the people who live up there.
YuriOtani
Yes the dream of peace and goodwill to all.
diuneahma
Why does the American need a lift from the Russians?
nath
Diuenahma.
The NASA no longer has the Shuttle and the new system is still under construction.
USNinJapan2
diuneahma
Been under a rock for the last four years?
ebisen
Bush, there's no embarrassment. The Americans are paying handsomely for the privilege of riding on Russian rockets. Also, it is a well known fact that so far, the Russians have the most reliable space transportation. Must be because they're not putting trillions of USD in various wars across the world...
Fadamor
Because our Space Shuttle program was retired.
No. The closest thing to sanctions is that Congress mandated that we stop using Russian-made rocket engines for our heavy-lift launch vehicles.
It's not an embarrassment so much as it's a shame.
Yes, but Congress chopped the budget for NASA and the manned space program was the most expensive part of NASA's budget. Manned spaceflight was put on a back-burner in order to continue funding the probes that either were already launched, or in the launch queue. Now our main hope is that private businesses will pick up the slack for manned spaceflight. It's silly, because the government is STILL going to have to pay the private businesses in order to get their astronauts up to the ISS.
Well, I'd take issue with "kept their program running". That makes it sound better than it really was:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mir#Post-Soviet_period
yamashi
@Burning Bush "What an embarrassment for the Americans to have to rely on Russians".
I would say what an embarrassment for the Russians to allow Americans to use Russian rockets and spaceships. Those economical sanctions imposed to Russia last year is a clear sign of rude hostility. While Americans is still trying to ruin Russian economics, Russians give them a hand of friendship in manned space flights.
lostrune2
Doesn't really matter. Americans will likely still be the first ones to Mars. They're the only ones running some current programmes to get there, even private enterprises.