No New Shuttle Flight Unless Rescue Mission Can Be Guaranteed

No New Shuttle Flight Unless Rescue Mission Can Be Guaranteed

http://www.spacedaily.com/news/shuttle-05y.html

Washington (AFP) Mar 22, 2005

The United States will not resume shuttle flights unless it has a support
shuttle ready to carry out rescues in space, the US space agency said
Tuesday.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration suspended shuttle missions
after the Columbia disaster in February 2003. It had hoped to stage a new
flight in May this year with the shuttle Discovery.
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space Station.

"In the unlikely event that all of our efforts to reduce risk and safely
return the space shuttle to flight have failed, we have made plans to keep
the space shuttle crew on the International Space Station and mount a rescue
mission," NASA said in its latest report on preparations for shuttle
flights.

"For the near term, we will not launch a space shuttle unless the second
shuttle can be prepared and launched within the time the International Space
Station can provide accommodation for the first shuttle's crew."
Atlantis is generally considered the reserve shuttle of the three remaining
vessels. NASA said a rescue mission would only be carried out "in the most
dire of circumstances and will not be used to justify flying unsafely."

Columbia broke up as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere on February 1, 2003,
killing all seven crew. Following criticism of NASA procedures, the other
three shuttles have been grounded since.

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--
--------------

Jacques :-)

www.spacepatches.info

"Jacques van Oene" wrote
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space Station.

The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.

Maybe the more precise way to say it is 'don't count on on another
S.T.S. launch again'?

Jim Oberg wrote:
"Jacques van Oene" wrote

But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space Station.


The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.

After STS-114, Discovery's next flight is scheduled for December.
Presumably the plan is to hurry through the minimal turnaround work so
that it can be ready for a hypothetical STS-301 rescue mission in
August, then do the rest of the preparation for STS-115 once STS-121 is
safely back on the ground.

Just how quickly can the turnaround be done? How much can STS-114 slip
before STS-121 is forced to slip into the September window (or later)?

For that matter, does the minimal turnaround needed to be ready for a
rescue mission result in much extra work in preparing for the subsequent
nominal mission?


John.

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In article ,
"Jim Oberg" wrote:

"Jacques van Oene" wrote
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space Station.

The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.



Can a rescue mission be launched without a guaranteed rescue rescue
mission?

--
Free men own guns, slaves don't
www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/5357/

John Wilcock wrote:


Just how quickly can the turnaround be done? How much can STS-114
slip
before STS-121 is forced to slip into the September window (or
later)?

For that matter, does the minimal turnaround needed to be ready for a

rescue mission result in much extra work in preparing for the
subsequent
nominal mission?



As ISS got started up, didn't KSC do a lot of preperation for a high
flight rate, and tighter turn-around times. For example, during the
brief stand-down after STS 93 weren't Endeavour, Atlantis and Discovery
essentially in different processing stages at the same time so they
could be launched in rapid succession (STS 103, STS 99, STS 101) once
they were flying again?

Of course post-Columbia, I don't think NASA is in any position to
demand "faster" work from KSC employees and that for the near future,
shuttles will be undergoing some closer inspection while in the
turn-around flow.

-A.L.

"Nick Hull" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Jim Oberg" wrote:

"Jacques van Oene" wrote
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could
not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space
Station.

The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.



Can a rescue mission be launched without a guaranteed rescue rescue
mission?

Now wouldn't that be something with all three shuttles simultaneously in
space!


--
Andy P. Jung
Metairie, Louisiana U.S.A.
(Home of Senator David Vitter)
http://www.JungWorld.com/

To reply via e-mail, please visit my web site.

If a rescue flight could be guarenteed, then it wouldn't be needed.
--
Gene Seibel
Space Ship One - http://pad39a.com/gene/ss1.html
Because I fly, I envy no one - except Mike Melvill.

"Nick Hull" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Jim Oberg" wrote:

"Jacques van Oene" wrote
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could
not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space
Station.

The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.



Can a rescue mission be launched without a guaranteed rescue rescue
mission?

Yes, in fact it's the only way it can be launched.



--
Free men own guns, slaves don't
www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/5357/

In article ,
"Greg D. Moore \(Strider\)" wrote:

"Nick Hull" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Jim Oberg" wrote:

"Jacques van Oene" wrote
But NASA said a new flight would not be held if a second shuttle could
not
be launched in time to rescue a crew on the International Space
Station.

The unwritten subtext is -- don't count on STS-121 going in July.



Can a rescue mission be launched without a guaranteed rescue rescue
mission?

Yes, in fact it's the only way it can be launched.

Of course the rescue rescue mission must be launched much faster since
the space station if filling up fast.

--
Free men own guns, slaves don't
www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/5357/