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ZL2VAL > SPACE 05.09.01 14:53l 156 Lines 7025 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
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To : SPACE@WW
First Commercial Space Station Planned by MirCorp and Russians
By Leonard David
Senior Space Writer
and Lon Rains
Space News Staff Writer
posted: 09:30 am ET
04 September 2001 MirCorp, the Amsterdam-based private firm that
attempted to keep the Russian Mir space station aloft for paid visits,
has announced the construction of a small space station, designed to
handle a variety of commercial, scientific or other payloads. The outpost
would be the first-ever commercial space station.
"MirCorp has reached agreement with the Russian government and with RSC
Energia (a part-private space engineering firm in Russia) to design,
develop, launch and operate the world's first private mini-space
station," said MirCorp President Jeffrey Manber.
MirCorp signed the agreement Aug. 24 with the Russian Aviation and Space
Agency, Rosaviakosmos, authorizing the mini station's development and the
use of Soyuz spacecraft. The Russian-language document was signed by Yuri
Koptev, director general of Rosaviakosmos, Yuri P. Semenov, president and
director general of Energia, and Manber.
Manber said the formal approval of the Russian government also is
required, but added he expected that within a few weeks.
Human-tended
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Manber told SPACE.com that the Mini Station 1 is to be human-tended, not
permanently occupied. A three-person crew could visit the mini-station
for up to 20 days, he said.
"It will be in the same [orbital] plane as the International Space
Station, and will serve as the destination for commercial visitors to
space, whether tourists, researchers, filmmakers or whomever," Manber
said.
The mini station will incorporate new Russian-built hardware and be about
the size of the Salyut stations Russia operated in the 1970s and early
1980s, Manber said.
Several other agreements between MirCorp and Russian space authorities
have also been reached. Details on these agreements are forthcoming,
Manber said. The $100 million station could open for business as soon as
2004.
The station, with a 15-year lifetime, could serve as a way station for
cargo ships bound for the ISS.
Complementing the ISS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Manber said that MirCorp continues to press ahead on a business model
that evolved from earlier plans to market the Russian Mir space station.
For a variety of political and technical reasons, MirCorp could not keep
the Mir in orbit, he said.
"Now we are taking what we developed and what we have learned and will
use that on our own platform," Manber said. Furthermore, in orbiting the
mini-station comes risk reduction, and greater safety by having an extra
platform in space, along with additional hardware, he said.
"We are complementing the ISS here, as our Soyuz will fly to both
stations and be part of the [space] taxi mission program," Manber said.
In just a few months time, MirCorp has regrouped from the deorbit of Mir
and has now gained the permission of Koptev to move forward on the
mini-station, Manber said.
MirCorp is now in talks with customers and strategic partners, Manber
said, both from the space industry and media.
"This is the model for what exploration of space should and can become,"
Manber said.
ISS destination before mini station opens
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Manber said the company plans to send two paying customers a year to the
outpost. In the meantime, Manber said, MirCorp has begun discussions with
NASA, the European Space Agency and the other partners in the ISS program
to send paying customers there until the first Mini Station is
operational. He said his company already is negotiating with paying
customers that include corporations and individuals.
Mini Station 1 will be manufactured by RSC Energia, the Korolev-based
organization that built Russia’s Salyut stations, the Mir space station
and Russia’s contributions to the international space station. Manber
said MirCorp signed a study contract with Energia — currently MirCorp’s
largest shareholder — about four months ago to demonstrate the
feasibility of the project to potential investors.
Manber said the next step will be raising private capital to fund
construction of Mini Station 1. He said the company will raise that money
with a combination of venture capital, commercial sponsors and the fees
it will charge initial customers.
"We need less than $100 million to pay for the construction of the
station and the launch of the station and the Soyuz spacecraft," Manber
said in a Sept. 3 interview in Paris with Space News.
Visits to ISS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once Mini Station 1 is operational, each mission will have a paying
customer accompanied to the private station aboard a Soyuz by two
professional cosmonauts. The commercial station will be outfitted with a
large window designed to provide spectacular views of Earth. The Mini
Station 1 crews will sleep in the Soyuz.
Manber said once each two-week trip is over, the paying guest will
accompany the cosmonauts to the ISS. At that time the professional crew
will change places with cosmonauts aboard the station whose tour of duty
is up. Those cosmonauts then will accompany the tourist on the trip back
to Earth in an old Soyuz that was docked to the station during the
previous crew stay.
That way, Manber said, the commercial activity will help the Russian
government pay for its obligations under the ISS agreement to provide
Soyuz crew transport services.
Like the Mir station, Mini Station 1 will get water, fuel and other
supplies from unmanned, automated Progress supply spacecraft, which will
dock to Mini Station 1 at one of two docking ports.
Mini Station 1 will be serviced by manned Soyuz spacecraft.
Back to the future?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the early 1980s, a small U.S. firm -- Space Industries, Inc., led by
former astronaut Joe Allen -- proposed a similar type of station. It was
dubbed the Industrial Space Facility (ISF).
But that effort dead-ended when it fell victim to behind-the-scenes
snipping between NASA forces, the U.S. Congress and White House
commercial space policy aficionados.
As envisioned in the case of the ISF, a free-flying facility can operate
autonomously, without a permanent, live-in crew. For instance, this type
of station, properly outfitted, could support the production of
electronic materials, pharmaceuticals, and other specialty goods.
Stopover crews would harvest the bounty of products grown in microgravity
for return to Earth.
=====================================
73 de Alan
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