NASA warns 'risk of losing' space station rising

AFP, Google ^ | 8/30/11 | Jean-Louis Santini

[Nachum]

WASHINGTON — The risk of an unprecedented evacuation of the International Space Station will spike if Russian craft cannot resume their missions and return by November, a senior NASA official has warned.

"There is a greater risk of losing the ISS when it's unmanned than if it were manned," Michael Suffredini, the ISS program manager for the US space agency, said in a conference call with Russian officials.

"The risk increase is not insignificant," he added.

Russia on Monday delayed its next manned mission to the ISS by at least a month after an unmanned cargo vessel crashed into Siberia instead of reaching orbit on August 24. The head of Russia's manned spaceflight programme also warned that a significantly longer delay would force the six people on board the station to abandon the orbiter due to fatigue and supply problems.

The station crew normally consists of six -- currently three Russians, two Americans and one Japanese -- working six-month rotations.

Staff safety and the "very big investment" that the Russian and US governments have made in the ISS would guide future decisions, Suffredini said during the call on Monday.

"We prefer not to operate in that condition without crew on board for an extended period of time just to make sure we end up in that situation.

[count-your-change]

Why you do that and think of the loss of prestige for teachers in space and every little munchkin being told they too can be an astronaut and go to the stars or some such rot.

[buccaneer81]

It’s all about priorities not playbooks.

You and a certain president share a similar view of our role in space.

The truth hurts.

[buccaneer81]

You have some issues. Did your Mom make you drink too much Tang as a kid? Or did the moon landings interrupt your soap operas on TV?

[count-your-change]

Ah...the predictable petty insults! If you would like the final word to add another feel free since I don't take such things seriously and won't be goaded into some tit-for-tat exchange.

[SunkenCiv]

"I plan to crash it this year as part of my outreach to my fellow Moslems."

[hattend]

"There is a greater risk of losing the ISS when it's unmanned than if it were manned,"

Why?

[smalltownslick]

I find this disturbing because we still have Americans up there. We have no more flights scheduled, and as has been mentioned, are quickly dismantling our space shuttles so we CAN’T make any more flights. Now the Russians are delaying their next flight. Will they delay again and again? And, if there are Soyuz available to bring the astronauts back, what happens if the Russians decide not to allow the Americans onboard? Dismantling our program and possibly leaving our people stranded is chilling.

[Mind-numbed Robot]

Maybe those billions would be better spent on researching cure for cancer or something

We were searching for a cancer cure long before NASA was created. Progress has been made in some areas but a cure is as illusive as renewable green energy. Money and government involvement has never been the answer for those things.

[Captain Beyond]

LOL nice one.