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Aviation History
1995
1995 - 2922.PDF
SPACEFLIGHT At the crossroads The future direction of the European Space Agency will be decided later this month. TIM FURNISS/LONDON THE SUBJECT DOMINATING TIIE European Space Agency's (ESA) Council of Ministers meeting in Toulouse, France, on 18-20 October will be the international space station, code-named Alpha — the first internationally manned space pro ject ever undertaken. After two days of political haggling and argument, the question about what part die ESA will play in the Alpha, if any, are expected to be answered. This, and other decisions at Toulouse, will determine the future of the European space industry' into the 21st century. There is a sense oideja vu about this, because every previous Council of Ministers meeting since that in Rome in 1985 has been dominated by debate on die space station, sometimes to the detriment of other programmes. This time, it is make-or-break for the ESA. The agency has to decide either to participate or pull out. COLD WAR DAYS In 1985, ESA had the money and political sup port to propose a four-element participation in NASA's planned international space station, together with Canada and Japan. The space sta tion was to be operational in 1994. ESA also planned a Hermes manned spaceplane and the Ariane 5 launcher. In those Cold War days, there was still a "space race", and the Soviet Union was plan ning its own space station. The picture is now different. There is no longer a space race, but, neither is there an international space station — the project has been constantly delayed and redesigned because US budget cuts. Ironically, Russia has rescued the international programme, and its own can celled space-station plans, by becoming a lead ing partner. To accommodate redesigns and its dwindling budget, ESA has been left with producing one Columbus module, much smaller than die one planned originally, called die Columbus Orbital Facility (COF). This will not join die space sta- FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 11 - 17 October 1995 The Columbus module just above the Shuttle is dwatfed by the rest of the space station tion until November 2002 (17 years after the project was launched). The ESA will also pro duce die newly proposed Automatic Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which will provide equipment to die station, using die Ariane 5 launcher, starting in March 2003. The agency also plans to provide microgravity-research equipment for die COF. NASA's budget allocation for the project seems relatively secure, and the first elements of die space station have already been built. Space construction will begin in November 1997. The programme's timetable will not allow the ESA to hold fire any longer. Some ESA member countries — the UK included — believe it sensible to put funds elsewhere. The long-delayed station depends too much on Space Shuttles to be built and operated, they say, and a major Shuttle accident could throw the whole project into chaos, critics believe. The stakes are particularly high for France, Germany and Italy. Germany and Italy are lead ing die prestigious COF project. France — die main contributor to die Ariane 5 programme — will be the ATV leader. It had earlier lost its major role in the Hermes manned spaceplane project when it was cancelled in 1993. France had hoped to develop an Apollo-cap- sule-like ESA Crew Transfer Vehicle (CTV) as an alternative to the Hermes, to ferry four peo ple to and from the station, relieving pressure on the Shuttle. Russia's Sovuz can do this effec tively (with three crew) and can fill the proposed CTV role of emergency return vehicle. LACK OF ESA FUNDS The ESA did not have the funds for both the COF and CTV and opted instead for the COF (for which some hardware has already been developed), as well as retaining the ATV. ESA now needs to commit S3.6 billion to the space-station project, with Si.8 billion paid between 1996 and 2000. Of this, Germany had committed $780 million, France $520 million and Italy $400 million, with lesser contributions from others, including Belgium and Spain. Italy has now jeopardised the programme by saying it can only afford to pay Si80 million of its originally committed S400 million, and the money will have to be made up largely by France and Germany. Italy still wants to retain the COF work, however. It also has a separate agreement with NASA to supply logistics mod ules — based on COF technology — and can claim to be involved in the space station anyway. France's commitment is dependent on the go-ahead for the Ariane 5 Mk2 vehicle and Germany's financial contribution to it. The UK may also contribute to a new Ariane 5 model. Another key issue is that ESA will be commit ting its members to paying $300 million a year to maintain the space station once it is opera tional after 2002. • 29
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