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Cosmonauts to learn making in-flight decisions without commands from Earth

The measure is needed because Moon mission crews won’t be able to "urgently deliver something and return to Earth," Roscosmos Executive Director of Manned Programs Sergey Krikalyov said

© Alexandr Sherbak/TASS

MOSCOW, April 12. /TASS/. Russian cosmonauts who will be sent on a mission to the Moon should become more independent and make their own decisions without commands from mission control centers on Earth, Roscosmos Executive Director of Manned Programs Sergey Krikalyov told TASS on Friday.

"We will develop a mechanism and its operational procedures that will grant more autonomy to the crew or require them to find an independent solution without commands from Earth," he said.

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According to the official, such a measure is needed because Moon mission crews won’t be able to "urgently deliver something and return to Earth." At the same time, Krikalyov pointed out that cosmonauts prepping routine principles will not change.

Russia is planning its own Moon landing program, which is expected to be adopted in 2019 and will run through to 2040. Russian cosmonauts are to land on the Moon after 2030, while a fully-equipped base available for visits will be built after 2035.

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