No more shuttles means goodbye Internation Space Station.

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[quoteMOSCOW (Reuters) - The $100-billion International Space Station could end up on the scrap heap if NASA's shuttle flights do not return to normal soon, scientists say.

NASA said on Thursday its next shuttle flight would not be until March, six months later than planned.

"The knock-on effects to the International Space Station are quite dramatic ... (long delays) could potentially be a show-stopper for the whole thing," Andrew Coates from UCL's Mullard Space Science Laboratory told Reuters.

The shuttle is the only vehicle that can transport parts to finish building the station, a 16-nation project to create a laboratory to study the effects of space on humans -- knowledge that could help with plans to send men to Mars.

Problems with a fuel tank during Discovery's flight this month after a two-year absence prompted NASA to ground its fleet until the problem is solved.

The station, orbiting 250 miles above the earth, has been permanently inhabited by humans since 2000. Building plans were halted after the Columbia accident in 2003, but maintenance trips to the station continued on Russian rockets.

Even if the shuttle returns successfully, NASA plans to retire it in 2010 and some critics doubt whether the station would even be finished by then after the delays.

since we are only 5 years away and seem to be getting rid of the shuttle fleet we might as well say goodbye to the international space station. i hope u ATS members have pics and videos of the space station cause they will be the only evidence left to show the existence of this space station. im sure there are those who are happy for they think this station is a waste of resources.

ISS is necessary for continued Manned Exploration to the Moon and beyond. Scapping it would be idiotic. But then again we are talking about NASA here....

Originally posted by sardion2000
ISS is necessary for continued Manned Exploration to the Moon and beyond. Scapping it would be idiotic. But then again we are talking about NASA here....

No, we're talking about the Bush administration.

NASA would like to be back flying again and doing more manned missions and robotic missions. But it's hard to do a 24 billion dollar program on what Congress allocates to them.

Originally posted by Byrd

Originally posted by sardion2000
ISS is necessary for continued Manned Exploration to the Moon and beyond. Scapping it would be idiotic. But then again we are talking about NASA here....

No, we're talking about the Bush administration.

NASA would like to be back flying again and doing more manned missions and robotic missions. But it's hard to do a 24 billion dollar program on what Congress allocates to them.

True but the Beuracracy in NASA is just inane whos fault is that? Not Bushes(and i'm not a bush fan either) Last 3 presidents I believe have slashed NASA's budget(with Congresses Approval) The Fault lies with an Apathetic Public who don't care about Space Exploration anymore

It is more important to give the billions to the oil companies. God only knows how much they need it. Why give it to NASA since they obviously have such a large source of income to work with.

end sarcasim

The Fault lies with an Apathetic Public who don't care about Space Exploration anymore

You hit the nail right on the head. That is the way that I feel. I know some people say well what if they never returned to the America during early exploration. Well what is on the moon? Rocks, lots of them, which we have samples in our possesion. Unless there is a big ass oil reserve under the moons surface(or some kind of fossil fuel) then it can't be that important to go back.

Another problem that arises from this is how many people are employed by NASA? To many to be slashing a great amount of jobs.

I say keep on doing the Hubble telescope thing but maybe we need to stop sending people up. Especially since they can't fix the problem when they had two and a half years and 1 billion dollars. That Billion sure could have been beneficial to the Public school systems.

So, I guess it is time bring house in space back.

Originally posted by Timcouchfanclub

The Fault lies with an Apathetic Public who don't care about Space Exploration anymore

You hit the nail right on the head. That is the way that I feel. I know some people say well what if they never returned to the America during early exploration. Well what is on the moon? Rocks, lots of them, which we have samples in our possesion. Unless there is a big ass oil reserve under the moons surface(or some kind of fossil fuel) then it can't be that important to go back.

Another problem that arises from this is how many people are employed by NASA? To many to be slashing a great amount of jobs.

I say keep on doing the Hubble telescope thing but maybe we need to stop sending people up. Especially since they can't fix the problem when they had two and a half years and 1 billion dollars. That Billion sure could have been beneficial to the Public school systems.

So, I guess it is time bring house in space back.

lol, don't weep about the 1 billion dollars that could have been allocated to the American school system... The war in Iraq has so far cost 188 billions $

Originally posted by deltaboy
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NASA said on Thursday its next shuttle flight would not be until March, six months later than planned.

What about the other countries planning shuttle flights? Couldn't they also contribute to further extend and add to the ISS?

Originally posted by Aether

Originally posted by deltaboy
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NASA said on Thursday its next shuttle flight would not be until March, six months later than planned.

What about the other countries planning shuttle flights? Couldn't they also contribute to further extend and add to the ISS?

what about respecting a deal? The other countries spent a lot of money.

come on everyone, we are talking about a short term solution to a long term problem. No one in the US government is thinking long term, unless you think the next election is long term. Everyone has learned to only accept quick fixes, the magical pill to make you smart, lose weight, get an erection, abort a baby, and become succesfull. ANd dont want to bother with long term permenent solutions

In the early years of all explorations its usually been the governments that financed the trips. Once the routes were established and such it was the merchant class that then exploited the discoveries.

Thesame will happen with space. So far the governments of the world have been financing the early stages but as technology develops the merchant class will take over.

That scenario has played out over and over in mankinds history. There is no reason to think it won't happen here as well. The governments will start focusing on the military implications while the merchants start building the hotels.

We live in a brave new world, somebody pass the soma please

Wupy