A Russian, an American, and a German astronaut
gathered Tuesday for a joint
press conference in Kazakhstan. This is the crew list of the 40th International Space Station (ISS) astronauts, who are due to be launched on May 28.
While space has remained politics-free, NASA’s Wiseman, ESA’s Gerst, and commander Suraev of Roscosmos could not leave questions on how their personal relations have been affected by the tensions between the powers on the conflict in Ukraine, which have already endangered space cooperation.
Instead of going into detail about the effects, the three astronauts stood up and hugged each other, signaling a lack of tension in the weeks leading up to the launch.
Gerst also gave an insight on the trio’s relations on the ground in the meantime.
Not only did the three spend many years training i the same place, but they have also spent much of their free time together.
Adding to the connection and mutual respect among crew members is the fact that the Russian and the American both used to serve as pilots for the United States Air Force.
The crew is scheduled to blast off to space in a Russian rocket on Wednesday and will take part in the
ongoing efforts on the International Space Station. They will spend six months in orbit and return to Earth in November.
The trio’s backup crew is equally international and diverse, consisting of Russia's Shkaplerov, America's Wirts, and Italy’s Cristoforetti, again three world players on opposing sides of the ground based politics.
