Of course they can - only Poland cannot!

Hello fellow polandball nerd c:

Good one here.

That doesn't look anything like Laika.

The space program's come a long way since Laika's pioneering pawsteps!

Hey, baby, what's ursine?

Soviet bear will not be swayed by capitalist pickup lines!

I want to take this image, print it up and put it on my "Furry Art" wall. It really has that "Feeling" of the Space Propaganda art of the 1950s. ...And I kinda like the idea that 'morph bears can be Scientists and explorers.

To boldly go where no bear has gone before!

No kidding! Hey, glad you like it!

Isn't that the Cosmonaut lady who volunteered to go one way to Mars?

V.

She did indeed! She also was a torch bearer in the last Olympics evidently :o

If I didn't have family I'd volunteer in a heartbeat. What an adventure!

V.

Bears of the world, Unite! Cast off your shackles!

seriously, this is super cool.

Praise to the brave bears of our motherland!

Man, you REALLY can catch those styles from the past like it ain't no thing!

Thanks! They make for fun art recipes!

And thats why Cosmonauts sound cooler than Astronauts.
Why are there now Spacenauts?

Who might be joined by whatever term the Indians pick (Aakashagami [meaning 'sky traveller'], 'Brahmāndagami' [Brahmānda- space and Gami-traveller], Gaganaut, Antariksha yaatri, vishvanaut [vishva- world, this reality] and brahmanaut [brahmand- universe] are the main ones doing the rounds)

Well, it is between the different nations trying to push out there, people like Elon Musk pushing tech forward because they can, or rich people who want to lock the market out to everyone but them.

So, interesting times ahead!

The real question is who steps on Mars first. Someone like NASA? Or a reality TV show?

Actually, that is happening right now.

http://www.mars-one.com/

Long story short, they are going to try and sell the broadcast rights to the "show" off as a means to bring in extra money for the company. It is worth knowing that the this sells itself as pushing for the first long term human colony on Mars, but it also makes it VERY clear that the whole thing is designed to support itself by pulling in cash from whatever means it can. Granted it doesn't try to hide it, but it makes it not too easy to catch that detail.

There are other ideas around there suggesting the same idea (even from within NASA), so far nothing has gone too far for any of them.

The generally tone from a lot of places online is to not question it, because "AWESOME!!!!".

Worth noting that they really talk up the words of Buzz Aldrin, who has publicly called them bs artists.

He is also someone who is more than happy to make fun of himself ("Second comes after first!"). He is also someone who likes to punch people in the face who yell to his face that he never went to the moon. :D

Good question!

"Grr rawr grwol rrrr, grrr roar growl grrr. Grrrar grrrr roar raaaawr, grrrr graawl snort. Grrr, roar ROARRR grrwowllll grrowl grrrr." ~Cosmonaut Bearkoli Grizyurislov Sr.

So inspirational- brings a tear to the eye ;_:

truer words were never said.

For the Glory of Mother Russia!

Bears: Russia's space race secret weapon.

Bears are their secret weapon for EVERYTHING, though! 9_9

For the glory of the Peoples Ursine Republic!

The P.U.R.? Uh oh - felines might already have laid claim to that acronym :3

10:30am is optimum time to launch bear cosmonaut.

Ground Control to Major Ursa (Ursa Major?)...

You and your crazy astronaut bears LN :P

Bearstonauts!

"поехали!"

Together!

Jsut as I get to watch Space 1999; renamed Cosmos 1999 in France :D

Protip: don't store nuclear waste on the moon!

What has Science done!

Gret artwork BTW - now on my phone wallpaper :p

It's finally what looked like Ludmila...

Could be! XP