The Roscosmos’s Soyuz vehicle has been ferrying crew to the International Space Station since November 2000. Originally Soyuz was designed to carry cosmonauts to the Moon, however was repurposed to be the main transport vehicle for Russia over the years. The Soyuz spacecraft is capable of carrying three crewmembers at a time and is certified to remain docked with the ISS for a maximum of 200 days and is launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome launch site.
Until the NASA Commercial Crew Program (CCP) is completed, Roscosmos remains the sole option for transporting astronauts to and from the ISS. At all times, at least one of the Soyuz spacecraft is docked at the International Space Station serving as an emergency lifeboat or escape pot should evacuation be needed. Typically two Soyuz capsules are docked at the ISS which allows up to six astronauts to remain on the International Space Station. The limit of six astronauts is established by the number of seats available for evacuation.
The 2003 Columbia accident resulted from the loss of insulating foam from the External Tank, which hit the Orbiter’s left wing during launch and created a hole in the protective tiles required for safe reentry. When The Space Shuttle Columbia entered the Earth’s atmosphere, the left wing leading edge thermal protection was compromised and unable to prevent heating due to the hole from the foam. The shuttle ultimately lost of control and was lost killing the crew.
All flights were put on hold for more than 2 years as NASA implemented numerous safety improvements, like redesigning the External Tank with an improved bipod fitting that minimized potential foam debris from the tank. Additional other improvements included Solid Rocket Booster Bolt Catcher, the newly added impact sensors on wing’s leading edge, and additional tools to inspect the vehicle for any possible damage while in orbit. Knowing the limitations of the Space Shuttle and the ultimate completions of the ISS, NASA started to think about how to best move forward since the Space Shuttle was nearing 30 years old.
- A successful human space transportation system would strengthen the ISS Program. The ISS for safety reasons could not leave more astronauts at the space station than Soyuz seats. The Shuttle was not designed for long duration stays in space and complex missions lasted 14 days. For longer duration stays, NASA needed a new option.
- NASA outsourcing development and transportation of crew to and from LEO would allow NASA to focus on beyond LEO exploration as well as potentially reduce the cost of human access to space.
- NASA envisioned commercial human spaceflight to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) creating a robust, vibrant, profit-making commercial enterprise with many providers and a wide range of private and public users and likely would significantly contribute to the US National economy.
Ultimately, the Space Shuttle costs per flight were roughly 1.7 Billion USD (adjusted for inflation and original development costs) NASA needed a new option for getting crew to and from the Space Station until it could complete the NASA Commercial Crew Program
Over the past two decades, more than 80 flights have transported over 200 astronauts to the International Space Station on either a NASA Space Shuttle or a Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities (Roscosmos) Soyuz spacecraft.
Since the end of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011, the Soyuz launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome launch site has served as the sole means of transporting astronauts to and from the ISS. These seats were purchased by NASA in place of transporting astronauts to and from the Space Station previously done with the Space Shuttle. (Read more about another spacecraft that could have been used to dock with the Space Station- Click here to learn about Shenzhou)
NASA has purchased, flown or plan to fly 71 astronauts since 2006. Two additional Soyuz flights are planned for 2020, each with one USOS crew-member aboard. (USOS is United States On-Orbit Segment of the ISS and is operated by NASA and its international partners—the Canadian Space Agency, European Space Agency, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.)
The total cost to NASA for the transport to and from the ISS and emergency escape services total roughly $3.9 billion. On average the cost per seat has been $55 million for missions from 2006 through 2020. The costs have been rising steady. Original seats purchased for less than $30 million each. The price increased up to about $55 million per seat by 2013. Most Recently, seats are costing 86 million dollars. For comparison Boeing has quoted $90 million and SpaceX has quoted $55 for ongoing crew transportation through 2024.[These per seat numbers do not include up front development costs]
(Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap). awarded by NASA in September 2014, are firm-fixed-price contracts worth $6.9 billion with Boeing and SpaceX to complete development of their commercial crew transportation systems and carry astronauts to and from the ISS on a total of 12 missions through the ISS’s planned retirement in 2024.) (see also 7 Spacecraft Critical for the ISS Survival)
In order to operate the ISS and conduct research, NASA and its partners have generally maintained a rotating crew of three to four astronauts on the USOS side. Less astronauts translate into higher percentage of operations and upkeep time spent as there is still the same amount of work to be done. This translates into less time available to conduct experiments and science. For example, two astronauts are required to conduct space walks. If one astronaut only was available on the ISS, spacewalks could not be conducted. Since Roscosmos has generally maintained two to three cosmonauts in the Russian segment, NASA has engaged in cross-training in the event that the USOS crew is reduced to one resulting from continuing delays on the commercial crew program.
USOS crew typically stay aboard the ISS for 5 month rotations as extended time in microgravity can have adverse impacts on humans. Although NASA typically limits the negative health impact extended stays in microgravity two astronauts have remained on the International Space Station for a year to study the long term health effects of extended space exposures. These extended stay missions allow NASA’s to collect data that can be used for the upcoming return to the Moon and eventually traveling to Mars.
The Soyuz spacecraft succeeded the Russian Voskhod spacecraft and was originally designed as part of the Soviet crewed lunar programs. An advantage Soyuz had over the Space Shuttle was the ability to abort in the event of a failure with the launch vehicle. The Soyuz spacecraft is launched on a Soyuz rocket and has needed leverage the abort feature successfully protecting the crew in the process.
Since November 2000, at least one Soyuz has always been at the International Space Station, generally to serve as a lifeboat should the crew have to return to Earth unexpectedly.The retirement of the US Space Shuttle in 2011 left the Soyuz TMA as the sole means of transportation for crew members going to or returning from the orbiting laboratory.
The Soyuz rendezvous and docking with the International Space Station are both automated processes. The Soyuz crew also has the capability to manually intervene or execute these operations. Once docking is complete, the crew members must equalize the air pressure of the Soyuz with the Station before opening the hatches.
No more than three crew are able to launch and return to Earth from the station aboard a Soyuz TMA spacecraft. Upon return to Earth, the vehicle lands on the flat steppe of Kazakhstan in central Asia.
The return to Earth aboard a Soyuz takes less than 3.5 hours.
Soyuz Specifications
Length: 22.9 feet
Diameter: 8.9 feet
Mass Descent module: 6,393 pounds
Orbital module: 2,866 pounds
Propulsion module: 5,732 pounds
Solar array span: 34.8 feet
Volume Descent module: 141.3 ft3
Orbital module: 229.5 ft3
Descent g-loads: 4-5 times the force of gravity
Landing speed: 6.6 feet per second
About The Author
Bill D'Zio
Co-Founder at WestEastSpace.com
Bill founded WestEastSpace.com after returning to China in 2019 to be supportive of his wife's career. Moving to China meant leaving the US rocket/launch industry behind, as USA and China don't see eye to eye on cooperation in space. Bill has an engineering degree and is an experienced leader of international cross-functional teams with experience in evaluating, optimizing and awarding sub-contracts for complex systems. Bill has worked with ASME Components, Instrumentation and Controls (I&C) for use in launch vehicles, satellites, aerospace nuclear, and industrial applications.
Bill provides consulting services for engineering, supply chain, and project management.
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