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Johnson Space Center Employees Hail Bush's Plan for Moon Base

Posted on: Thursday, 15 January 2004, 06:00 CST

Jan. 15--Johnson Space Center workers Wednesday applauded President Bush's plans to build a moon base as man's steppingstone to the planets and said they have the ability to make the big dreams come true.

Some cautioned, however, that it will take a lot more than the $11 billion that Bush so far wants to divert to exploration within NASA's budget in the next five years to meet the ambitious timetable the president laid out.

Others said the plans portend major changes in programs that already have occupied many space center workers for years.

"I think the funding is probably not adequate to really mount a big change in what we've been doing," said Tico Foley, a human factors analyst whose work involves matching tools and space environments with human needs.

Bush proposed total new funding of $1 billion, or $200 million a year, over the next five years, Foley noted.

"We'd be hoping for a lot more than that to get something happening," Foley said. "Just to do a robotic mission to the moon, for example, is going to cost a lot of money."

Whatever happens, space workers expressed confidence that the people who built NASA will be able to carry out Bush's plans.

"Those of us who have been working on any of the programs talked about will have to shift our emphasis," Foley said. "For example, if you worked on the orbital space plane, you're going to have to decide that all the old designs have to be relooked at because it's going to have to be a different kind of vehicle with a different mission."

Electrical engineer Coy Kouba said current employees can adapt, however.

"The change will have to be based heavily on the lessons we've learned from the shuttle and space station programs," Kouba said. "The lessons from all of our past projects will be extremely valuable in how we explore the moon and Mars and onward."

The orbital space plane had been pegged to replace the shuttle and serve as a cheaper, more efficient way to transport people to and from the international space station.

Bush's speech suggested that the Earth-to-orbit, reusable space plane must morph into a vehicle that will take people not just to the space station but to the moon and beyond.

"If we plan it right, I don't think we'll have to reinvent the wheel several times over," Kouba said. "I think we could devise some sort of modified vehicle, or have several variants of a vehicle, that could be used for low Earth orbit or to the moon and onward."

Derek Green, a computer programmer for NASA contractor Barrios Technology, said he thinks the $4 billion or so NASA spends on the space shuttle annually will be pumped into development of the crew exploration vehicle and could be enough to complete the project.

"But for going to the moon, after 2014, I think you're going to see a need for more funding," Green said.

With a child in his lap, Green was one of 700 people who watched Bush's speech on a big screen in a JSC auditorium.

He brought his daughter Laura, 5, from Alvin's Mark Twain Elementary School to see the president speak.

"I thought it was a significant day to take her out of kindergarten, since most of the initiatives they talked about today are things she'll be involved in in the future," Green said. "Who knows? She might even be flying."

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(c) 2004, Houston Chronicle. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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