Alpha Centauri 2

Community => Recreation Commons => Destination: Alpha Centauri => Topic started by: Buster's Uncle on March 17, 2016, 06:39:54 pm

Title: Russia slashes space funding by 30 percent as crisis weighs
Post by: Buster's Uncle on March 17, 2016, 06:39:54 pm

Russia slashes space funding by 30 percent as crisis weighs
Reuters  4 hours ago


(http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/GQphn_wQogEz2LoGKEOeqw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3NfbGVnbztmaT1maWxsO2g9MzAwO2lsPXBsYW5lO3B5b2ZmPTA7cT03NTt3PTQ1MA--/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/Reuters/2016-03-17T135907Z_1_LYNXNPEC2G13A_RTROPTP_2_MIDEAST-CRISIS-RUSSIA-SYRIA.JPG)
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev speaks during an interview on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, February 13, 2016. REUTERS/Dmitry Astakhov/Sputnik/Pool



MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev agreed to slash funding for Russia's space program by 30 percent on Thursday, an effort to reign in state spending in the face of a deepening economic crisis.

Approving a plan submitted by Russian space agency Roscosmos in January, Medvedev ordered Russia's space program budget for 2016-2025 to be cut from 2 trillion rubles ($29.24 billion) to 1.4 trillion rubles.

"It is a large program, but we need such big programs, even in circumstances when all is not well with the economy," TASS news agency quoted Medvedev as saying.

Space exploration is a subject of national pride in Russia, rooted in the Cold War "space race" with the United States, and has been touted by President Vladimir Putin as a symbol of his country's resurgent global standing.

But along with other large-scale and costly projects, such as preparations for the 2018 soccer World Cup, state support for Roscosmos has fallen victim to Russia's steep economic downturn, fueled by a collapse in global oil prices and Western sanctions.

In line with its reduced funding, the space agency has agreed to delay a manned flight to the moon by five years - to 2035 from 2030 - and scrap plans to develop a reusable rocket, a potentially valuable cost-saving technology.

A Roscosmos spokesman previously said the agency would reassess its plans after 2025.

(Reporting by Jack Stubbs; Editing by)


http://news.yahoo.com/russia-slashes-space-funding-30-percent-crisis-weighs-135907872.html (http://news.yahoo.com/russia-slashes-space-funding-30-percent-crisis-weighs-135907872.html)