The View from Space: More troubles for ISS

e-mail:jholliman@cnn.com

March 2, 1998
Web posted at: 2:20 PM EST (1420 GMT)

In this column:

• Congress may cap spending
• Thomas gets A-plus from NASA

(CNN) -- Don't be surprised to see more delays in the construction of the new international space station. I'm hearing from people at NASA and in the Russian space agency that the United States wants to delay the launch of the first element from June to August. That would put the first U.S. element in orbit in September.

After criticizing the Russians for delays in manufacturing parts of the station, NASA is expected to announce soon it won't be able to launch its first piece of the station on time.

The problem is not with station hardware, but with another piece of equipment that is competing with space station hardware for a ride on the shuttle. The culprit is the advanced X-ray observatory, which is not ready for its scheduled August shuttle launch.

The soon-to-be-changed schedule calls for the first element of space station, a Russian-built segment called the functional cargo block, to be launched in late June. The Americans planned to launch a connecting tunnel to double the volume of the station on July 9. U.S. space agency planners now say they want to delay the first U.S. launch until September, to make room for the X-ray telescope launch.

Congress may cap spending

If the Russians approve, NASA would ask them to delay their first launch of station hardware until August, to allow the first U.S. piece to lift off in September.

This delay, combined with massive cost overruns, have convinced some in Congress to demand a cap on U.S. spending on the space station. It's now more than $4 billion over budget according to Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona.

The senator has commissioned a General Accounting Office report on NASA's cost overruns on the station and says he will introduce legislation to cap U.S. spending on the station.

And there are other problems with the station. We've talked about Russian financial problems in building the third piece of station hardware. The service module has been behind schedule for months and it appears it won't be ready for a December launch as promised. NASA is telling some congressional leaders that the Russians probably won't be able to launch their segment until March of next year.

Thomas gets A-plus from NASA

American Andy Thomas and his Mir crewmates held a news conference late last week and described a work day that starts at eight in the morning and continues past midnight. He says it's one of the toughest things he's ever done.

Thomas is having success growing human cancer cells in weightlessness. The object of the experiment is to get the cancer cells to grow large enough to be studied better by researchers on the ground.

Thomas' boss, Shuttle-Mir program manager Frank Culbertson, says he gives the final astronaut to live on Mir an A-plus grade for his first month there.

Culbertson reported an anomaly that blew hot air into the space station and looked like it potentially could have created a fire on board. The problem with a contaminant removal system was solved quickly, and increased carbon dioxide levels that resulted are coming down day by day.

John Holliman's column appears on Wednesdays.

Related stories:

• NASA to seek delay in space station launch - Feb. 27, 1998
• The View from Space: Big preps for solar eclipse - Feb. 24, 1998
• The View from Space: The Mir diet - Feb. 18, 1998

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