As the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues, citizens have difficulty coping with the effects of war. According to Space.com, the US-based space technology company Maxar Technologies recently released some photos taken by their WorldView-3 satellite showing hundreds of people queueing in food lines in Mariupol, a port city in southern Ukraine.
Satellites like those continue to provide glimpses of the toll that Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine has caused. In the description of the photos, the people were waiting to receive food and other supplies.
TOPSHOT - People wait in line to buy food in front of a supermarket in Kyiv on March 1, 2022. - Russia will continue the offensive in Ukraine until its "goals are achieved", Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on March 1, almost a week into Moscow's invasion.
Satellites Documented Ukraine-Russia Conflict From Space
The Ukrainian city of Mariupol is facing a shortage of food, water, and other necessities amid the ongoing war. The Russian forces have been continuously moving into the city for more than a month. The invasion has been going on since Feb. 24.
Food lines in besieged Ukrainian city Mariupol visible from space (satellite photos) https://t.co/v13JspEzYh pic.twitter.com/EOu9YpiRSv
— SPACE.com (@SPACEdotcom) March 30, 2022
BBC News reported that Russia sees the capture of the city as a strategic priority and has been sending missiles and artillery along its way that end up destroying apartment blocks, grocery stores, theaters, and other commercial buildings.
Maxar Technologies, Planet, BlackSky, and other space companies use their satellites to document the damages incurred by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and reported these images in the past month.
As Space.com reported, the new set of images from Maxar has even highlighted the impact of the war on the people in Ukraine. Two of the images taken by the WorldView-3 were captured on Tuesday, March 29, showing several damaged apartment buildings and houses.
The United States and other countries in the west have already imposed harsh economic sanctions in response to the invasion of Russia to Ukraine. More so, a number of high-profile businesses have ceased their operations in Russia for now as part of their sanctions.
Russia's Space Relationship With Other Countries
With the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the relationship of Russia with other countries is also affected not only by its economy. For instance, Russia has suspended selling its rocket engines to companies in the US and stopped using Russian-made Soyuz rockets at the Spaceport of Europe in French Guiana.
However, some space relationships persist despite the ongoing war. One of these agreements includes the active partnership with the International Space Station (ISS), as shown by the recent return of NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei and two other cosmonauts from Russia. The three of them landed on Wednesday, March 30, on the steppes of Kazakhstan via the Soyuz capsule.
But since the sanctions, Roscosmos admitted it would hit microelectronics supplies necessary for spacecraft. Due to this, they told Russian media on Feb. 26 that they are looking forward to partnering with China. However, a report from Reuters the next day reveals that China so far does not seem to be helping Russia avoid sanctions.
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