Newsgroups: sci.space.shuttle
Path: utzoo!henry
From: henry@utzoo.uucp (Henry Spencer)
Subject: Re: Shuttle from Vandenberg
Message-ID: <1989Feb11.234744.20258@utzoo.uucp>
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
References: <919@cs.rit.edu>
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 89 23:47:44 GMT

In article <919@cs.rit.edu> jrb9465%ucss@cs.rit.edu (John R. Broderick) writes:
>I believe that the new shuttle may be the main shuttle to be
>launched from Vandenberg. I can't remember where I read it
>(AV Week ?)  that the new shuttle will be significantly lighter
>than the old ones, especially Columbia. The weight savings is
>necessary for the Polar launches that are to be done from there.
>Vandenberg is scheduled to be reopened sometime in 1992. 

Can you cite references for this?  I'm unaware of any plan to reopen
Vandenberg, and am aware of a number of indications that it will never
be reopened.

The new orbiter is being built to essentially the same standard as Atlantis,
which will indeed make it lighter than Columbia (and perhaps a bit lighter
than Discovery).

>Any idea what the new shuttle (OV - 106?) will be called ?

It's OV-105, I think; the name has not yet been chosen.
-- 
The Earth is our mother;       |     Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
our nine months are up.        | uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry henry@zoo.toronto.edu