Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!rutgers!rochester!sol!yamauchi From: yamauchi@cs.rochester.edu (Brian Yamauchi) Newsgroups: sci.space Subject: LLNL Astronaut Delivery (was Re: You Can't Expect a Space Station) Message-ID: Date: 5 Nov 90 06:02:59 GMT References: <6930@hub.ucsb.edu> <9011020342.AA24274@iti.org> <2658@polari.UUCP> Sender: news@cs.rochester.edu (Usenet news) Organization: University of Rochester Lines: 39 In-Reply-To: crad@polari.UUCP's message of 5 Nov 90 01:11:43 GMT In article <2658@polari.UUCP> crad@polari.UUCP (Charles Radley) writes: [quoting Alan Sherzer] +Again, can you be more specific? When McDonnell Douglas says they +can cluster Deltas to lift a 100K pound payload for $500M in three +years on what do you base your belief that it can't be done? When +Martin Marrietta makes similar claims about the Titan, why are they +wrong? What error in costing did they make? - I have no doubt MDAC and Martin can deliver those. But I am still waiting to hear how they or anybody else can build a new re-usable manned spacecraft with long stay EVA capability (including robot arm) for less than $ 5 - 10 B. You cannot build LLNL without one, you yourself acknowledge the need for contingency EVA, and that is what it takes. Looks cheaper to use the Shuttle for the contingency EVA role. I'm not sure that contingency EVA requires a "re-usable manned spacecraft with long stay EVA capability (including robot arm)". As long as the Earth Station maintains integrity, the astronauts should be able to run EVAs out of it. Of course, if it doesn't, then they *are* in deep trouble. On the other hand, Charles Radley does raise an important point here. How *is* LLNL planning to get astronauts up to the station? Are they planning to use the shuttle or develop their own spacecraft? It probably wouldn't be too risky to rely on the shuttle for one or two launches, where it really *is* useful (i.e. launching astronauts). In contrast, the number of shuttle launches that Freedom requires makes me a bit uncomfortable. Then again, I could be wrong -- at least the hydrogen leaks have been fixed... -- _______________________________________________________________________________ Brian Yamauchi University of Rochester yamauchi@cs.rochester.edu Computer Science Department _______________________________________________________________________________