Jun 9 1998
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(New page: The U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies, responsible for allocating space funding, voted to back funding for NA...)
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The U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies, responsible for allocating space funding, voted to back funding for NASA's ISS obligations but "cautioned the space agency to control costs and ensure Russia's commitment to the expansive project." The subcommittee voted for a US$13.6 billion budget for NASA for the fiscal year, including US$2.3 billion for the space station. Senate Subcommittee Chairperson Christopher Bond (R-MO) said that, although the budget was US$150 million more than President William J. Clinton had requested, it was US$33 million less than NASA's 1998 spending level.
Research scientists working on a US$33 million experiment to search for antimatter in space, spoke at a news conference, announcing that the communication-system breakdown on Space Shuttle Discovery had ruined their tests. The astronauts had been unable to repair Discovery's main antenna system, which had broken shortly after launch, rendering the Shuttle unable to transmit high-speed data or video back to Earth. Scientists working on the project needed continuous, high-speed data to calibrate the AMS, which was searching space for rare subatomic particles known as antimatter. However, using a patchwork system, they had only been able to receive a few minutes of data each hour, which meant that, although they could see that the AMS was working, the spectrometer was not providing them with enough data to fine tune the magnet. According to Project Manager James Bates, the scientists had failed to accomplish their objectives because of the malfunction.
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