On Thu, 25 Aug 2005 09:54:01 -0500, Jeff Findley wrote
(in article ):


Of course, you do have to take all the issues you present into account.
However, it's entirely possible that after analyzing the problem that you
may find that the changes to the Columbus structure could be minimal to
allow launch on top of Ariane.

The ONLY way that could be true would be if the hypothetical Ariane V
STS replacement aeroshell has the same interfaces and launch
environment as an STS cargo bay. Designing such a beast - and
qualifying/verifying it - would be very expensive. If the
environments are different at all only adds to the complexity of the
task, especially with regard to flight qualification. In what
parameters do the environments vary? And by what degree? And do those
variances matter at all? You have to have real answers to those
things if you want to launch any pre-built ISS hardware on anything but
a shuttle orbiter vehicle.

But you would still have to re-run all of
your structural/dynamic analyses with the new restraints and loadings on the
structure. Even if zero changes were necessary, which even I doubt, the
cost of certifying the structure is o.k. to launch on Ariane would still be
somewhat time consuming and costly (a $million here, a $million there...).

Try "billion" and you get the idea. :-/

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