Russia deals with a lot of sanctions imposed by the West as a result of Ukraine’s invasion that began in late February. It seemed like just a matter of time until Russia would also withdraw from the International Space Station (ISS), where it was being represented through its space agency Roscosmos.
According to LiveScience.com, as the publication cites the independent Russian news agency TASS, Russia has confirmed its withdrawal from the ISS. However, Russian authorities seem very reserved when it comes to explaining the decision. The latter publication quotes Dmitry Rogozin, the director-general of Roscosmos, as stating for Rossiya-24 TV channel:
The decision has already been made, we are not obliged to talk about it publicly.
However, even if it’s operating in the Earth’s orbit for more than two decades already, the International Space Station (ISS) won’t remain there forever.
An older article from CNN was saying that NASA will ultimately crash the International Space Station into the ocean. However, that will happen a few years from now.
Patrick O’Neill from CASIS (Center for the Advancement of Science in Space), stated as CNN quotes:
We’ve had over 3000 experiments that have been happening on station, and there’s now over 30 commercial facilities that are operational.
He also stated as the same source quoted:
Instead of having an ISS National Lab [on the ISS], perhaps you might segue into a low-Earth orbit national laboratory or national laboratory that encompasses some of these other commercial destinations.
Otherwise, the International Space Station has proven itself very useful for mankind. There’s no wonder why five space agencies joined forces to make its activity possible: NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), JAXA from Japan, Roscosmos from Russia, and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).