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MY WORDS ARE BACKED WITH BIO-CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Oct 2000
time: 07:25
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Published Sunday, October 1, 2000, in the Miami Herald
NASA's future wedded to costly, aging shuttle
With the 100th flight of the space shuttle program set for Thursday, NASA concedes the latest project to build a replacement is behind schedule and over budget.
BY MARTIN MERZER
The nation's only vehicle capable of carrying humans into space relies on 1970s technology, cannot vault them out of Earth orbit and is plagued by staff shortages, mechanical problems and the icy memory of a winter day when seven astronauts died.
The 100th flight of the space shuttle program is set to blast off Thursday from the Kennedy Space Center, and NASA now concedes it must rely on the shuttle until at least 2012. The latest project to build a replacement is behind schedule and over budget and may never fly.
The prolonged dependence on the dated and troubled shuttle could slow efforts to build the International Space Station by 2006 and otherwise explore space, experts said. But engineers and explorers have no choice.
They must use the shuttle ''until it blows up or wears out,'' said John Pike, who monitors NASA for the Federation of American Scientists. ''And it's perfectly capable of blowing up every time they launch it.''
It's a harsh assessment, but one that is widely accepted. The shuttle is the most complex machine ever designed. A study released last month by the General Accounting Office found that each of NASA's four shuttles requires 1.2 million maintenance operations before every flight.
''Space systems are inherently risky because of the technology involved and the complexity of their activities,'' said the report, which noted with alarm that cost-cutting has left the National Aeronautics and Space Administration with an exhausted, demoralized workforce.
In addition, public support for space exploration seems thin. A Gallup poll last December found that only 56 percent of Americans support robotic missions to Mars, a necessary step before human missions. Forty percent did not want to spend more money on such missions.
WHAT AILS NASA
That concerns Kurt Volker of Dania Beach. During the 1960s, he worked at Cape Canaveral as an electronics technician on the Apollo moon landing project.
''I don't think NASA necessarily lacks the vision to put the spark back into the space program,'' he said. ''What they lack is the same level of support in Washington for human space exploration that there was during the days of Gemini and Apollo. The attitude today seems to be 'been there, done that.' ''
Still, it's the only space show around, so Volker and his wife plan to drive to the Kennedy Space Center this week to watch the 100th launch.
NEXT MISSION
Seven astronauts aboard the shuttle Discovery are scheduled to blast off at 9:38 p.m. Thursday on another mission to build the space station.
The 11-day flight will be extremely demanding, with most work occurring outside the shuttle.
Two pairs of astronauts will conduct four spacewalks. They must attach a heavy girder, connect a new shuttle docking port and install toolboxes and power converters.
The crew has been training for this mission for 3 1/2 years, nearly twice as long as most crews.
''If there was ever a mission worth waiting for, this is it,'' said Pamela Melroy, the shuttle's rookie pilot.
Scientists say the space station will allow them to work in microgravity, which can speed progress on the development of new medicines and materials.
MOVING INTO STATION
If all goes well, this week's mission will open the door for the new station's first permanent residents.
Astronaut Bill Shepherd and two Russian cosmonauts are set to blast off from Russia on Oct. 30 and live in the station for four months.
Even the shuttle's critics agree with supporters that the vehicle is well suited for this kind of work. It is a spacefaring ferry that carries cargo and astronauts into Earth's orbit.
Still, the shuttle has failed to come close to its promoters' grandest promises.
When the program was proposed in the 1970s, NASA said it was capable of launching 60 shuttles a year.
Since the inaugural flight of Columbia on April 12, 1981, the agency has never broken into double digits in any year.
Last year, it managed only three launches.
In addition, the cost of flying the shuttle is enormous -- roughly $500 million per flight, which breaks down to about $10,000 per pound of cargo carried into space.
''It's been a profound disappointment as far as what was promised,'' Pike said. ''But also, knock on wood, it's been a reliable -- if expensive -- way of getting into space.''
Reliability is a relative concept, and many question just how reliable the shuttle is.
VIVID MEMORY
It may not be fair, but the most profound memory that many people carry of the shuttle involves the Challenger accident of Jan. 28, 1986. All seven astronauts aboard Challenger were killed, including teacher Christa McAuliffe, NASA's first -- and last -- ''citizen in space.''
The tragedy resulted in a 32-month hiatus in the shuttle program, and the fleet has been grounded many times since by mechanical problems.
Now, NASA calculates the risk of catastrophe at one in 438 missions; others think it is much higher, possibly as high as one for every 78 launches.
The shuttles were built to withstand 100 flights, and the oldest shuttles -- Columbia and Discovery -- have flown 26 and 27 times, respectively.
''We're only a quarter of the way through their rated life span,'' said Bruce Buckingham, a NASA spokesman. ''It's a significant achievement that we can continue to fly a vehicle developed 25 years ago.''
REPLACEMENT SOUGHT
Conceding that the shuttle is becoming technologically obsolete, NASA has spent $1 billion on a modern, higher-tech replacement -- the triangular, flat-bottom VentureStar.
It is supposed to leap into space on a single-stage reuseable rocket, without the disposable external fuel tanks or recoverable external rockets that are part of the shuttle.
Supporters also hope it will be more reliable than the shuttle and cheaper to operate, liberating funds for more weather satellites and other projects that might win public support.
OBSTACLES REMAIN
The only problem with VentureStar is that it doesn't seem to work.
A half-size prototype, the X-33, was supposed to fly 18 months ago.
So far, no joy. The test vehicle still is only half built. Among other things, its lightweight, hydrogen fuel tanks have a tendency to rupture, a definite disadvantage.
A new attempt to build fuel tanks will be started, NASA announced Friday, and the X-33 has no chance of being tested in flight until at least 2003.
Many believe VentureStar will never get off the ground. In response, NASA now wants $4.5 billion during the next five years to look at other possible replacements for the shuttle.
At the same time, acknowledging that it is stuck with the shuttle until at least 2012, NASA is embarking on a $2.2 billion modernization program.
Inspectors from the General Accounting Office generally approve, but they raise several concerns.
STAFFING SLICED
One of the most serious involved staffing. NASA's budget was sliced during much of the 1990s, falling from $14.4 billion in 1995 to $13.6 billion this year. In response, the agency fired hundreds of skilled engineers and other workers.
Widely criticized for the cutbacks, NASA recently began hiring again. But it remains woefully understaffed at a time of increased flight schedules.
As for the more distant future, most observers do not detect public support for -- or an ability within NASA to promote -- ambitious new programs of human spaceflight to the moon, Mars or beyond.
So, for as long into the future as anyone can predict, the shuttle is the only hope.
Said Pike: ''If the Lord had meant us to fly in space, we would have been born with more money.''
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panag
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MY WORDS ARE BACKED WITH BIO-CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Oct 2000
time: 07:25
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pdf , it reads "cutting risks by 2005 , .........
today theThe 21st Century Space Shuttle
Future Upgrades
Tomorrow’s Shuttle: Cutting Risks in Half by 2005
Enhancements now under development could double the shuttle's safety by 2005: New sensors and computer power in the main engines will "see" trouble coming a split second before it can do harm, allowing a safe engine shut down. A new engine nozzle will eliminate the need for hundreds of welds and potential leaks. Electric generators for the shuttle's hydraulics will replace the highly volatile rocket fuel that now powers the system. And a next-generation "smart cockpit" will reduce the pilot's workload in an emergency, allowing the crew to better focus on critical tasks. Other improvements will make steering systems for the solid rockets more reliable, make the manufacturing of solid propellant safer and increase the strength of external fuel tank welds.
Solid Rockets and External Tank Upgrades
Future improvements for the solid rocket boosters include a redesign of several valves, filters and seals in the steering system to enhance their reliability as well as studies of the potential for an electrical system to power the booster hydraulics. Also, changes to the solid rocket propellant manufacturing process will make the workplace safer for shuttle technicians. For the external tank, a new friction-stir welding technique will produce stronger and more durable welds throughout the tank.
Better Main Engines
The space shuttle's main engines operate at greater extremes of temperature and pressure than any other machine. Since 1981, three overhauls to the original design have more than tripled estimates of their safety. Now, a fourth major overhaul is planned that will make them even safer by 2005. The planned improvements include a high-tech optical and vibration sensor system and computing power in the engines that will "see" trouble coming a fraction of a second before it can do harm. Called the Advanced Health Monitoring System, the sensors will detect and track an almost microscopic flaw in an engine's performance in a split second, allowing the engine to be safely shut down before the situation can grow out of control. Also, the engine's main combustion chamber will be enlarged to reduce the pressures on internal components without reducing the thrust, and a new, simplified engine nozzle design will eliminate the need for hundreds of welds — over 152.4 meters (500 feet) of them — and potential leaks.
"Smart Cockpit"
The new "glass cockpit" that will be initiated when Atlantis launches on STS-101 sets the stage for the next cockpit improvement, planned to fly by 2005: a “smart cockpit” that reduces the pilots’ workload during critical periods. The enhanced displays won't fly the shuttle, but they will do much of the deductive reasoning required for a pilot to respond to a problem. By simplifying the pilots' job, this “smart cockpit” will allow astronauts to better focus on critical tasks in an emergency.
y lost the second one , three are left , .......
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Sandman
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Sinister Penguin
Aug 2001
time: 05:25
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Name: Rick D. Husband
Position: Commander
History: Husband, 45, makes his second trip into space. The U.S. Air Force colonel and mechanical engineer piloted a shuttle flight in 1999, which included the first docking with the international space station.
Name: William C. McCool
Position: Pilot
History: The 40-year-old former test pilot makes his first foray into space. The U.S. Navy commander and Naval Academy graduate is responsible for maneuvering the shuttle as part of several experiments.
Name: Michael P. Anderson
Position: Payload Commander
History: Anderson, 42, went into orbit once before, a 1998 shuttle flight that docked with the Russian space station Mir. The U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and physicist is responsible for the shuttle science mission.
Name: David M. Brown
Position: Mission Specialist
History: The U.S. Navy captain makes his first flight into space. Brown, 46, an aviator and flight surgeon, is working on many experiments, including numerous biological ones.
Name: Kalpana Chawla
Position: Mission Specialist
History: Born in India in 1961, Chawla earned an aerospace engineering doctorate from the University of Colorado in Boulder. Chawla, who has logged more than 375 hours in space, was the prime robotic arm operator on a shuttle flight in 1997.
Name: Laurel Clark
Position: Mission Specialist
History: Clark, 41, a U.S. Navy commander and flight surgeon, is making her first flight into space. A medical school graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Clark is taking part in a variety of biological experiments.
Name: Ilan Ramon
Position: Payload Specialist
History: Ramon, 47, is the first Israeli astronaut. A colonel and former fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, he saw combat experience in the Yom Kippur War in 1973 and the Lebanon War in 1982.
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01-02-2003 20:51
WE HAVE A ONE!
Ain't that the truth...
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