MOSCOW, Dec. 28 (Sputnik) -- The developers of the Russian space station have decided to abandon the concept of "warranty" in their designs and use the term "specified life", the press service of Russia's Energiya rocket and space group told Sputnik. "The concept of warranty period does not fully apply to facilities such as space stations, because it refers to the period during which the manufacturer is obliged to eliminate defects in the goods, and it is very difficult to return an object such as a space station to the manufacturer," the press service official said. ”
He added: "We switched to the concept of "defined life", because the life span can be unlimited for the Russian space station, because it can be extended by replacing the module. ”
Yuri Borisov, General Director of Roscosmos, said earlier that 80% of the equipment of the ISS continues to work after the warranty period. Sergei Krikalev, executive director of the group, explained that the warranty period does not equal the maximum service life, and even the most complex machinery has a much longer maximum service life. The ISS began construction in orbit in 1998 and was originally planned to run for 15 years. This period was later extended to 2020 and then to 2024. At present, the Russian side has extended the period of use of its own part until 2028, and all other participating countries until 2030. The launch of the first module of the new Russian space station is scheduled for 2027, which is designed to last 50 years. Among them, the developers plan to replace the old modules with new ones to achieve the goal of extending the life cycle.