NASA chief Dan Goldin is getting tough with agency officials he believes
aren鈥檛 doing enough to ensure astronauts鈥� safety.
In November, the NASA Advisory Council, a panel of engineers and scientists
that advises the agency, was shocked to discover that nobody had done a
鈥減robabilistic risk assessment鈥� (PRA) for the International Space Station,
despite the high likelihood that something will go wrong
(鈥淚SS Titanic鈥�, New 女生小视频, 14 November 1998, p 38).
At that time, Frederick Gregory of NASA鈥檚 Office of Safety and Mission
Assurance promised the council that a PRA would be performed. But little has
been done. 鈥淭o do a PRA for the station would be a monumental activity,鈥� Gregory
told New 女生小视频. 鈥淚t would take as much time to do as has already
been spent on developing the station.鈥�
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At a meeting in Washington DC late last month, Goldin apologised to the
advisory council for the safety office鈥檚 performance. 鈥淵ou asked for a PRA. I
don鈥檛 feel that the space station team has addressed this with the seriousness
that鈥檚 necessary.鈥� He told the council he had personally initiated an
assessment.
The space station is not the only focus of safety concerns. The designs for a
proposed reusable launch vehicle have displeased Goldin because they do not give
the crew a way to escape if the craft runs into trouble during launch. 鈥淰ladimir
Titov sat on top of a Proton rocket that exploded under him. He鈥檚 still alive,
he flew on the shuttle, and he has a family,鈥� he told the advisory council.
鈥淭his is because the Russians said: `We will not compromise safety.'鈥� Goldin
added: 鈥淚 personally asked our people to assure safety, from engine ignition
through main engine cutoff. We do not have it.鈥�
Goldin fears that this could lead to a repeat of the 1986 Challenger shuttle
disaster: 鈥淣ASA might be on the verge of making another mistake.鈥�
