Japan's space agency cautiously greets NASA plan to resume shuttle
Posted on: Tuesday, 9 September 2003, 06:00 CDT
TOKYO (AP) -- Japan's space agency cautiously welcomed NASA's plan to resume shuttle launches next year, but will only allow a Japanese astronaut on the next mission if it's satisfied with safety.
Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi, 37, was set to fly on the next NASA mission, originally scheduled for last March, but the flight was put on hold after the Columbia space shuttle tragedy in early February that killed seven astronauts.
On Monday, the U.S. space agency announced a ``return to flight'' plan with a resumption of flights as early as next March.
An official with the National Space Development Agency of Japan welcomed the steps outlined in NASA's plan to improve the safety of future flights.
But he said Japan was still reviewing the risks of sending Noguchi on the Atlantis.
``We are operating on the assumption that Noguchi is still scheduled to go,'' said NASDA spokesman Yoshihiro Nakamura, adding that Noguchi would continue training in Houston with other crew members.
``Nothing concrete has been decided,'' he said. ``Japan will first need to determine the mission is safe.''
Two weeks ago, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board concluded in its final report that a stray piece of insulating foam and a lax attitude toward safety were responsible for the shuttle's destruction.
Nakamura said Japan will continue to monitor improvements, adding that determining future Japanese participation is an ongoing process requiring constant evaluation of NASA's technology and plans.
Japan has no manned space program of its own, but is a major backer of the International Space Station project -- a joint project it's involved in with the United States, Russia, the European Union, and Canada. It is intended to be fully operational between 2008 and 2010.
Tokyo has committed 325 billion yen (US$2.6 billion) -- or one-fifth the cost -- to the program and is the second-largest contributor of funds after the United States.
Along with Noguchi's flight to the space station on the shuttle Atlantis, Japan had hoped to use a shuttle to take a module to the station in 2006.
If he goes, Noguchi will become the fifth Japanese to ride a shuttle. The first was Mamoru Mori in 1992.
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