Russia to orbit ISS based free flyer in 2015

[Danderman]

Courtesy of Novosti Kosmonavtika:

http://lenta.ru/news/2009/09/29/okat/



Roskosmos is planning to orbit a free flyer for microgravity research. Apparently, the free flyer, to be designed by the Progress plant in Samara, would periodically dock with ISS for sample exchange.

Don't hold your breath!

[bobthemonkey]

Woo, its like being back in the '80s.

Remember all that talk of man tended free flyers, zero-g production on a semi-commercial scale with frequent flights of some small space planes to harvest the crop.

What happened to the US MTFF - cancelled. What happened to the European free flyer - cancelled. What happened to Hermes - cancelled.

[Blackout]

Don't they know ISS is going to take a swan dive into the Pacific only one year later?

 

[Nickolai]

Don't they know ISS is going to take a swan dive into the Pacific only one year later?

Russia is planning on disconnecting its segment from the US side and keeping it in orbit as the basis for OPSEK.