Four-person US-Russia-Japan space team heads to the International Space Station, simulating a lunar landing

A four-person international space team, jointly launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and SpaceX, successfully took off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 1 (Friday), heading towards the International Space Station (ISS), with plans to stay in orbit for about six months.

According to AFP, the crew members executing this mission include two American astronauts - Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Russian astronaut Oleg Artemyev. They were launched into space at 11:43 a.m. local time on Thursday, aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket.

The four astronauts are traveling on the Crew Dragon spacecraft named "Endeavour," which has previously completed four NASA missions and one private commercial mission.

Simulating lunar south pole landing scenarios to carry out preparations for returning to the Moon

During their six-month mission, the Crew-11 team will participate in a series of scientific experiments related to the "Artemis Program." This program aims to return humans to the Moon, with one important step being the simulation of landing in the lunar south pole area, testing astronauts' ability to operate spacecraft in low-gravity environments, which will directly provide data support for future lunar lander operations.

Dmitry Rogozin, head of the Russian space agency, and NASA Acting Administrator Sean Dougherty held talks this week, marking the first face-to-face exchange between the two countries' space officials since 2018.

AFP reported that although relations between the United States and Russia have been tense since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, Russia once threatened to terminate its cooperation with the International Space Station ahead of schedule. However, Rogozin stated on Thursday that Russia will continue to participate in the operation of the ISS until 2028 and cooperate with the station's retirement and deorbiting until 2030.

In the current highly tense geopolitical context, the International Space Station remains one of the few high-tech platforms that maintain US-Russia cooperation.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1839301886757888/

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