NASA still “pushing” for a Russian cosmonaut to fly on next SpaceX mission

Enlarge / Anna Kikina will be just the fifth Russian woman to go to space. (credit: Roscosmos)

More than three months after the invasion of Ukraine, it is clear from the actions of Russia, the United States, and the International Space Station's other partners that they would like to keep the jointly operated facility flying above Earth-bound tensions.

But one of the biggest outstanding questions is whether the manner in which astronauts and cosmonauts reach the space station will change. Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, NASA and Russia had been planning to initiate "seat swaps" this fall, with a cosmonaut, Anna Kikina, flying on SpaceX's Crew Dragon vehicle for the first time.

Presently, Kikina is scheduled to launch as part of the "Crew 5" mission in September, which will be commanded by NASA astronaut Nicole Mann. Around the same time, NASA astronaut Frank Rubio would launch on the Soyuz MS-22 mission, commanded by Sergei Prokopyev.

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