Feb 20 2001
From The Space Library
Space Shuttle Atlantis STS-98 landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California after three days of bad weather had prevented its planned landing at NASA’s KSC in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The crew received a congratulatory call from President George W. Bush, praising their successful 13-day mission. By the time that Atlantis and its crew departed the ISS, the Shuttle had significantly boosted the space station’s orbit, leaving the ISS orbiting at about 237 miles (381 kilometers) above Earth. While attached to the space station, Atlantis had used a series of engine bursts to push the ISS approximately 16 miles (26 kilometers) higher than its previous position. Shuttle crew had also unloaded food and supplies, including an enormous Russian carbon-dioxide removal unit, for the use of the three-person ISS crew during their visit. (Associated Press, “Shuttle Back on Earth After Dismal Three Days,” 21 February 2001; Associated Press, “Atlantis Leaves Space Station in a Higher Orbit,” 16 February 2001.)
On the 15th anniversary of the launch of the Mir space station and with its doom imminent, Russian scientists and other space enthusiasts protested the plan to use a controlled descent to destroy the aging vessel. Once a point of pride for the Soviet space program, Mir had remained in use far beyond its planned lifespan and had fallen into disrepair. Russian Space Agency Chief Yuri Koptev attempted once again to explain why Mir had to come down: “The Mir has lived a wonderful life and must end it in a graceful way. We must discard it while we are still capable of controlling it, not turn its descent into roulette that threatens the entire global community.” Russia had planned to initiate Mir’s final descent in mid-March 2001. (Associated Press, “Report: Russia Puts Off Dumping of Mir for a Week,” 15 February 2001; Associated Press, “Russia Marks Mir’s 1 5th Anniversary by Assuaging Fears of Its Demise,” 19 February 2001; Associated Press, “Scientists Protest on Mir’s 1 5th Anniversary,” 20 February 2001.)
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