Russian officials have sent out mixed messages in recent weeks whether the two cosmonauts on board the Russian space station Mir would be blamed and/or penalized for a June 25 collision between a Progress supply spacecraft and the station's Spektr module.
     A report September 2 stated that cosmonauts Vasily Tsibliev and Alexander Lazutkin were found to be responsible for the collision which depressurized the Spektr module and would be fined.
     "There is no doubt about the conclusion that has been drawn," said Valery Ryumin, former cosmonaut and deputy director of the Energia company which manages Mir. "One feels sorry for the lads, but facts are facts."
     That report was disputed by Russian officials later, who said the investigation was ongoing and that any blame would have to be shared with ground controllers.
     On September 9, the paper Kommersant Daily reported that Russian officials had fined Tsibliev and Lazutkin the maximum 30 percent of their pay they would have received from the mission. The 30 percent fine equals an estimated $10,500.
     That report was disputed by Russian officials, who said it was normal for cosmonauts to receive only 70 percent of their pay at first. The remaining 30 percent, or some fraction thereof, would be paid once a final conclusion had been reached on the cause of the collision.
     Despite the cloud of uncertainly about the cause of the accident, the two cosmonauts are being treated as heroes. Tsibliev will be given an "Order of Merit of the Fatherland" award and Lazutkin the "Hero of Russia" medal. Both will also receive plots of land outside Moscow, mobile phones, and other gifts.

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