Oct 20 1994
From The Space Library
Philip Ellaby Cleator, founder of the British Interplanetary Society dies in Oxton Lancashire.
Some of U.S. astronaut Norman Thagard's equipment would not reach Russian Space Station Mir until May even though he himself was scheduled to reach Mir on March 14. The equipment was all to have preceded him but Russia had experienced problems with some of its space cargo flights. The result would be that there would be fewer blood, saliva, and urine samples returned to Earth and some work would be started later because of lack of test equipment. Jim Nise, NASA manager of Mir-Space Shuttle programs at Johnson Space Center, was doing his best to expedite matters and Thagard was philosophical about the situation. In November, NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin told the American Astronautical Society of the delay, indicating there was a problem getting Thagard's gear for experiments through Russian customs. (H Post, Oct 20/94; NY Times, Nov 29/94; Birmingham Post-Herald, Nov 30/94)
Freelance journalist Alcestis Oberg maintained that following the November elections NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin planned to cut jobs at Johnson Space Center drastically. According to the article, Goldin hoped to reduce the Space Shuttle operations workforce by 50 percent in five years. A worst-case scenario involved a cut of 30 percent in 1995. (H Post, Oct 20/94)
NASA announced that it would continue to study how the Earth's environment was changing and how human beings affected that change during the upcoming flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis. This, the third flight of the Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS) was part of NASA's Mission to Planet Earth. Also during the mission astronauts would deploy and retrieve a free-flying satellite designed to study the middle and lower thermospheres and would perform various experiments covering life sciences research and microgravity processing. The flight, commanded by Donald R. McMonagle, was scheduled for launch on November 3. (NASA Release 94-175)
The Department of Energy (DOE) unveiled "a revolutionary 21st century" lighting system that used a bulb of sulfur bombarded by microwaves to produce bright illumination resembling sunlight-and did so at a fraction of the cost of many conventional systems. The prototype lamp was invented by a Rockville, Maryland, start-up company called Fusion Lighting Inc. and developed under contract to WE. NASA had a two-year contract with the company to develop lights for growing plants in space. (W Post, Oct 21/94)
NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin presented Congressman Louis Stokes with the National Association of Small Disadvantaged Businesses Meritorious Award "for his outstanding contributions in the performance of contracts at the NASA Lewis Research Center and turning NASA Lewis Research Center around." (Call and Post, Oct 20/94)
In a speech to aerospace executives at the South Bay Association of Chambers of Commerce, NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin stated that "survival of the fittest," the new motto at NASA's contract office, should also be the rule at aerospace companies. He asserted that defense and space companies must follow NASA's lead in streamlining operations and delivering results for the public. (Daily Breeze, Oct 21/94)
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