Russia Tries to Save the World

This scares the hell out of me. No, really. It scares me almost as much as those 2012 end-of-the-world theories. I mean ... damn!

Russia Talks of Plans to Divert Asteroid
The leader of Russia’s space agency said this week that the country is considering plans to divert an asteroid thought to possibly be on a collision course with the Earth.

Anatoly Perminov told the Voice of Russia that plans were being discussed in closed-door meetings for a mission to divert the asteroid, known as Apophis.

However, international estimates differ on the likelihood of the asteroid making an impact with the planet. Read the full story here ...

Russia Takes Nuclear Aim at Mars

Russia is looking into the nuclear option to put a man on Mars. This article notes that it will be expensive. I'm no economist, but I think they're probably in a better position financially to take on such a project than the U.S. or any other country.

Russia Looks to Go Nuclear in Race to Mars

The chief of Russia’s space agency has proposed the construction of a nuclear-powered spaceship in order to take people to Mars and other planets.

The expensive and technologically challenging project is projected to take about 12 years to prepare, according to Anatoly Perminov, who posted remarks about the proposed ship on the Russian space agency’s Web site.

Read the rest here ...

Star City - Russia's Space Capital

I though this was an interesting piece about Russia's famed "Star City." Funny that it is so well-known, yet hardly anyone has ever seen it. I wonder if there would be more enthusiasm for the Russian space program if they opened it up for more people to tour and see ...

It was once the place where Yuri Gargarin rocketed into the sky to become the first man to orbit the earth. Today, it is where countless astronauts and cosmonauts prepare for space travel inside mockups of the International Space Station.

It is Star City, a community of space researchers hidden in the woods northeast of Moscow. And despite its status as Russia’s home base during the historic space race and the multitude of advanced aeronautic research still conducted there, few people have ever had the chance to visit the famed town.

Read the rest here ... Includes a link to a Star City photo gallery from the BBC.