from the "pretend-to-pay-me-and-I-will-pretend-to-work" dept.
A domestic newspaper warns of the Russian space program's "rapid collapse"
A long and strikingly critical article that reviews the state of the Russian space program was published in the state-aligned newspaper MK this week. None of the findings in the 2,800-word article were particularly surprising. Western observers who track the Russian space industry realize the program is deeply troubled, and to a great extent running on the fumes of its past and very real glory. What is notable, however, is that a major Russian media outlet has published such a revelatory article for a domestic audience.
[...] The article, translated for Ars by Rob Mitchell, is titled "The Space Program Is Rotting from Within." It begins with the declaration that Russia's space program has a shortage of competent and highly qualified staff, obsolete facilities and technology, and "systemic leadership weakness." And that's just the opening paragraph.
Popov goes on to state that Russian space companies are delinquent on promised deliveries for hundreds of contracts. For example, the Khrunichev Center agreed to deliver 10 booster cores for the Angara A5 rocket five years ago. [...] Popov said Roscosmos is struggling even to build its mainstay vehicles, the Soyuz rockets and Progress spacecraft. Consider a recent docking issue with the Progress vehicle, which carries supplies to the Russian segment of the International Space Station.
[...] The overall portrait Popov paints of Roscosmos is that of a wasteful, increasingly decrepit enterprise where almost no money is being invested into the present or future. Instead, the focus seems to be providing high-paying jobs for a handful of technocrats, whose salaries are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars a year. Meanwhile, the average monthly wages for technical specialists who build the country's rockets and spacecraft range from $500 to $1,000 a month.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @01:03AM
I fuck gelflings.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @01:20AM (7 children)
This is why Putin cracked down on domestic reporting back in October. The only surprising thing is that this report was allowed to be published. https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/10/russia-tells-its-space-reporters-to-stop-reporting-on-the-space-program/ [arstechnica.com]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday December 19 2021, @07:41AM (6 children)
Can't contain it forever, but can control the initial spin.
Rule number one of government fuckups. Find someone to blame.
Frankly, this is just typical of government run programs - some combo of corruption, bureaucratic scoliosis, and political status signaling. They could have looked at it, any time in the past three decades (first time they would have been allowed to) to find the problems that plague it now. And odds are good that we can look at this program in three decades and see nothing improved.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by mcgrew on Sunday December 19 2021, @06:56PM (1 child)
If you equate Russia's or China's government with Britain's or Germany's, you're a fool.
Impeach Donald Palpatine and his sidekick Elon Vader
(Score: 1) by khallow on Sunday December 19 2021, @07:47PM
(Score: 4, Interesting) by PiMuNu on Sunday December 19 2021, @08:19PM (1 child)
> Frankly, this is just typical of government run programs
Just to respond to this rather broad statement; government-run programs have been responsible for a significant proportion of tech advances in the last century. For example, how many Nobel prizes have been awarded to people in private businesses?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @04:49AM
Yah but how many government workers get blown by hookers on a 100ft yacht in the Caribbean?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @08:41PM (1 child)
Hah, yes. My initial thought was that either this reporter is going to go missing soon or this was written on Putin's orders and the leadership of the Russian space program need to be really worried.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @04:52AM
It's incredible but sometimes people just had enough and speak out. The leadership in corrupt places is all built on a house of cards that relies on everyone being afraid. See Republican Party + Trump for a recent example.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Joe Desertrat on Sunday December 19 2021, @01:43AM (7 children)
The lack of oversight has led to corruption that enriches a few with long term failure for the rest. They survived by near monopoly after NASA stopped sending flights up, but now that SpaceX and ULA and others are competing successfully, their days are numbered.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @04:39AM
That's enough about "capitalism" already comrade! At least SpaceX are building a functional free-market solution. Kosygin would be proud of you.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Sunday December 19 2021, @07:00PM
When I met Jenine Epps at the 2016 Hugos, she indicated that she didn't trust Russian rockets and was supposed to ride one to the ISS in 2018, but she got bumped because they needed a physician more than an engineer. She's with the SLS program now, I'll bet she's relieved!
Now I know why the Russian rockets worried her.
Impeach Donald Palpatine and his sidekick Elon Vader
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Sunday December 19 2021, @08:22PM (1 child)
I'm not sure of the direction of your comment. Obviously, capitalism should kill off such a corrupt outfit, which it appears to be doing (hence SpaceX etc). Maybe your criticism is that capitalism is not acting quick enough?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Joe Desertrat on Monday December 20 2021, @12:48AM
If you are going to have capitalism and be successful over the long haul, you need effective regulation. Otherwise, corruption will reign and collapse is inevitable. In a system where you have no competition, effective regulation is even more important.
(Score: 2) by MIRV888 on Monday December 20 2021, @01:09AM (1 child)
'The lack of oversight has led to corruption that enriches a few with long term failure for the rest.'
So it's like America.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @05:46AM
Disturbingly so. The only meaningful difference is that private launch companies can actually exist in the US. Everything else is graft and corruption all the way down.
(Score: 2) by istartedi on Monday December 20 2021, @02:39AM
They didn't do so well before capitalism either [wikipedia.org]. You can blame the Soviet system, or you can blame the brutality of the Eastern Front during WW2. Von Braun wanted to make absolutely sure he made it to the American lines. Thus the line from The Right Stuff: "Our Germans are better than their Germans".
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @01:55AM (5 children)
They should specialize on space toilets and offer to supply spacex.
Slogan: Tolet - the russian rocket science.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Sunday December 19 2021, @07:03PM (3 children)
You do realize that SpaceX's capsules are the first to have toilets, don't you? For half a century it was diapers.
Impeach Donald Palpatine and his sidekick Elon Vader
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @05:50AM (2 children)
Not true at all. Both US and Russian spacecraft have had toilets as standard equipment since the 60's.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @09:01PM (1 child)
With gold seats? I doubt it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @10:51PM
No seat, just a vacuum hose with a 'special' fitting on the end. GIS 'Soyuz toilet' sometime. IIRC it wasn't until the Shuttle that they got fancy things like seats. The one on the ISS is based on the Shuttle.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @05:59AM
Nobody in their right mind wants to use Russian space toilets. Like most Soviet hardware they work but they are brutal. Roscosmos even offers enemas to all Soyuz crews shortly before launch and low-roughage food in flight so they can hold it for the three days it takes to link up with the ISS before making the traditional mad dash for the station's toilet. Even the Shuttle's toilet was a luxury by comparison.
(Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @02:53AM (1 child)
The bear survived the attack of the bees but he brought back treasures of honey coating his penis and scrotum.
The thin man shaved his scrotum and the fat man shaved his head bald. The thin man covered the bald man's head with a warm scrotum and with one testicle over each eye!
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @02:59AM
yeah you like that bear don't you you want to suck the honey off his penis and balls you want him to go balls deep in your anus don't you
I bet you want to suck the thin man and the fat man's cocks at the same time and wear both of their scrotum as a hat with TWO TESTICLES OVER EACH EYE!
lick and suck.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @02:58AM (2 children)
The front page comment counts don't seem to update.
It seems an intermittent problem that keeps popping up every now and then.
No biggie. Happy holidays to all you SN scumbags and SN staff. Particularly to the "editors" I keep ragging on about - buncha douchebags.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @04:02AM (1 child)
Some humorless cocksucker modded me "troll" - a half-wit knucklehead.
Hey, jan, back me up, this is how you limey lot talk, innint?!
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @04:33AM
I modded your back up +1, the troll was from some idiot.
I've posted a note about the front page comment counters on the IRC channel, someone is looking into it now.
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @03:05AM
I just had a wonderful vacation in India.
I fed my semen to a bunch of wild monkeys. I ejaculated up into the air each time and one of them would catch it.
I swear none fell to the ground during this exercise which I continued throughout the week.
Every. Single. Time. the monkeys would catch the flying blobs and swallow the delicious and nutritious love juice.
Blueberry muffins.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by loonycyborg on Sunday December 19 2021, @10:28AM
Due to all that brain drain and the fact that entire country is run like British Raj it's a miracle that any space program still exists. Calling this "collapse" stems from massively inflated expectations that have nothing to do with reality and never had.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @02:40PM (6 children)
Too bad Russia doesn't have Any billionaires interested in space
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @04:57PM
They have a lot of soccer teams and luxury Florida condos tho.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by khallow on Sunday December 19 2021, @04:58PM (4 children)
For all the handwringing of the amateur psychologists in this forum, the democratic world has a better class of billionaire. Maybe it's time to wonder why.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by choose another one on Sunday December 19 2021, @11:55PM
I don't think it necessarily is a better class of billionaire.
Russia has ways of getting rid of it's billionaires if/when they do stuff the establishment doesn't like, and is not afraid to use them, anywhere in the world.
Taking on Roscosmos with a private space program in Russia, or even funded in Russia, probably comes firmly under "stuff the establishment doesn't like". Russia may actually have billionaires interested in space, just not interested enough to significantly reduced their own life expectancy.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @05:00AM
Wait, is it guns? The 2nd Amendment. That's it.
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Tuesday December 21 2021, @06:28PM (1 child)
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday December 22 2021, @04:30AM
(Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 19 2021, @11:16PM
A domestic newspaper in USA warns of imminent collapse of democracy and takeover by Marxist Communist jews.
And not many listen.
(Score: 2) by MIRV888 on Monday December 20 2021, @01:07AM (4 children)
If the rocket program has gone to (bleep), then their nuke missile gear hasn't fared any better.
Russia isn't the adversary anymore. China is.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @06:16AM (2 children)
Russian military rockets work just fine. It's their civilian space program that is utterly bankrupt, both financially and technologically, and has no viable path forward beyond burning it all down and starting over from scratch. Basically there is nothing left to loot and their only meaningful funding has been cut off by SpaceX so the parasites are getting ready to put it down for good and move on to a new host.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @09:04PM (1 child)
Elon Must single-handedly defeats the Commies? Put out a press release, I'm getting tingles down my spine.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 20 2021, @11:20PM
You jest, but all of the OldSpace commercial launch companies are in serious trouble right now. Roscosmos has only held on this long because nobody actually bothered to compete before. It didn't matter how high your prices were or how bad your service was because the waiting list for a rocket (any rocket) was over five years. SpaceX chewed through the last of the backlog near the end of 2019 and there simply isn't enough work to go around anymore. That is why Starlink exists, to give SpaceX something to do between customers.
TL;DR Roscosmos lost the NASA contracts that were their primary income to SpaceX, they don't have enough domestic government launches to pay the bills, and aside from OneWeb nobody wants to fly with them.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 22 2021, @02:41AM
Isn't that like saying the USA's nukes won't work if NASA is gone?
The US military's space shuttle was still in operation long after NASA's space shuttle was retired: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_X-37 [wikipedia.org]