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New Space Station Crew Nears Launch

Posted on: Tuesday, 12 April 2005, 21:00 CDT

An American astronaut and Russian cosmonaut are scheduled to blast off from Russia Thursday for the international space station, where they hope to host the crew of the first NASA space shuttle flight since the shuttle Columbia broke apart more than two years ago.

American John Phillips and Russian Sergei Krikalev say they hope the resumption of shuttle flights brings new vitality to the orbital outpost.

Their Soyuz capsule is undergoing final preparations to lift off from Kazakhstan late Thursday.

Krikalev, the station's new commander, and Phillips, the flight engineer, have trained for a six-month mission that is expected to feature visits by the crews of the shuttles Discovery in mid-May and Atlantis in mid-July.

NASA's shuttle fleet, an essential part of future space station assembly and resupply operations, has been grounded since the Feb. 1, 2003, death of the Columbia crew.

"It's going to be a big deal. We have a lot of work to do to support the shuttle's return to flight," said Phillips, a space physicist who will mark his 54th birthday on Friday. "This will be a challenge and at the same time a wonderful opportunity for us to be up there."

Krikalev and Phillips will be joined Thursday by Italian astronaut Roberto Vittori, who is scheduled to return to Earth on April 24 with the station's current tenants, American Leroy Chiao and Russian Salizhan Sharipov. They will return on a Soyuz capsule parked at the space station, ending a 6 1/2 -month mission.

During his eight days aboard the station, Vittori plans several novel experiments, including one to examine the grafting of Italian grape vines in the absence of gravity.

Krikalev and Phillips will play important roles in the Discovery and Atlantis missions, which NASA views as test flights to evaluate safety changes made in response to the deaths of Columbia's seven astronauts.

As the crew of Discovery and Atlantis close within 600 feet of the space station during their docking maneuvers, the shuttle pilots will slowly rotate their winged spacecrafts.

Posted at the windows of the station with cameras fitted to long telephoto lenses, Krikalev and Phillips will photograph the underside of Discovery and Atlantis in search of damage to the external heat shielding.

The imagery, transmitted for analysis on the ground, will help reveal any damage from the break-away foam fuel tank insulation that triggered Columbia's breakup.

If one of the two visiting spacecraft sustains damage so severe it could not land safety, the shuttle astronauts would be forced to remain aboard the station to await rescue.

As hosts to the stranded shuttle crew, the Russian and American would be responsible for coaxing space station life support systems accustomed to supporting two astronauts to care for nine people.

The space agency believes the breathing oxygen, food, water the other vital supplies aboard the station and shuttle could be stretched to accommodate the larger crew for about 45 days. NASA would attempt to launch a rescue shuttle within seven weeks.

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On the Net:

http://www.nasa.gov

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