Gregg Easterbrook takes issue with NASA’s “Who, us?” attitude toward protecting the Earth against errant asteroids in a piece titled, “The Sky is Falling,” in The Atlantic. “The odds that a potentially devastating space rock will hit Earth this century may be as high as one in 10. So why isn’t NASA trying harder to prevent catastrophe?” Easterbook’s answer? NASA is obsessed with putting humans on the moon.
A Russian Progress vehicle was launched from Kazakhstan on Wednesday with fresh supplies for astronauts aboard the International Space Station. And what will the fastest men alive be receiving in additional to their regular shipment of clothes, oxygen and fuel? Snails. Ninety of them. (No, they’re not going to eat them; it’s all part of a biology experiment. Really.)
In other news, SpaceX’s Elon Musk is saying that he could launch astronauts to ISS aboard his Dragon spacecraft by 2011 if NASA gives the OK to develop a human-rated version of the vehicle this summer. This date is at least two years (or four or five) before NASA would be able to launch its Orion vehicle.
This is an ambitious goal given that SpaceX has yet to successfully launch anything into space. It failed in both attempts to launch its small Falcon I rocket; a third attempt is scheduled for next month. Dragon will be launched atop the company’s larger Falcon 9 rocket, which has yet to fly.
NASA plans to rely upon commercial vehicles to supply the International Space Station after 2011 instead of purchasing additional Progress freighters from Russia, Aviation Week reported on Thursday.
“Administrator Michael Griffin has sent a letter to Capitol Hill specifically excluding Progress from a request to continue using Russian Soyuz capsules to deliver crew to the ISS after the shuttle retires in 2010,” AvWeek reports.
SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corporation are developing robotic supply spacecraft under NASA’s COTS program. These vehicles are set to fly sometime after 2010. Other ISS supply ships include the European Automated Transfer Vehicle, which flew its inaugural flight last month, and Japan’s H-II Transfer Vehicle, scheduled to fly next year.
Over at Flight Global, Rob Coppinger looks at the logistical challenges that lie ahead for the International Space Station over the next several years as the facility grows and the space shuttle is retired.
The challenges include completing construction of the Japanese Kibo module, expanding the station’s crew size to six, and keeping the facility supplied with a combination of American, Russian, European and Japanese cargo freighters.
Andrei Kislyakov has an interesting analysis on the RIA Novosti website about Russia’s future role in the International Space Station project. Although there are fears in the West about the country’s growing role in the program, some in Russia worry their involvement could decline in the future.
The recent launch of Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle resupply ship has subtly shifted the balance among the partners. Europe will be playing a larger role in station operations, a role that could eventually expand to flying astronauts to the facility aboard a human-rated ATV.
To date, crew transfers and cargo resupply have been handled by the American space shuttle and the Russian Soyuz and Progress spacecraft. However, America plans to retire the shuttles in 2010, and it could be five years before the successor vehicle, Orion, flies crews to ISS.
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