Computer problems continue on Alpha

The new space station robot arm is shown holding its packing crate on Wednesday, April 25

JOHNSON SPACE CENTER, Texas -- NASA will try again Friday to have the space station's new robot arm "shake hands" with its space shuttle cousin, a test delayed for two days by computer problems on Alpha.

Mission controllers originally planned to have the new arm handoff its 3,000-pound packing crate to the shuttle's arm on Wednesday, but all three command-and-control computers on Alpha went down, disrupting communications on board the space station.

"We don't know what was causing the problem, we assume it's got to be something new in the software realm," said John Curry, space station flight director.

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Thursday, NASA said one computer was working. But mission managers were reluctant to begin the robotics test with only one computer up and running.

"That's probably not the smartest thing in the world to do," Curry said. "We really don't want to get into the middle of this and then be stuck."

If a second computer doesn't come back online, Curry said mission managers might consider another spacewalk to retrieve the crate and stow it in the shuttle. But he said a more likely scenario is that the packing crate would be left hanging off the new arm until the next shuttle crew arrives in June.

"I think in the short term it would stay there until the next flight," he said.

While waiting for the space station computers to be repaired, the crew members of Alpha and Endeavour focused on unloading the Raffaello cargo module.

The carrier brought up 10,000 pounds of supplies, from food and clothes to science experiments and racks to hold them. NASA said it has been unpacked. The crews now are filling it with trash from Alpha and used supplies. It will be returned to the shuttle's cargo bay and carried back to Earth.

If the computer problem persists, NASA could extend the shuttle mission by a day or two to give engineers more time to figure out what went wrong. Endeavour is currently scheduled to land at Kennedy Space Center at 10 a.m. EDT on Monday.

The station arm will lift its pallet, the curved white object shown here, and hand it to the shuttle's arm

A delay in the departure of Endeavour could mean a delay in the launch of space tourist Dennis Tito aboard a Russian Soyuz craft. Tito is scheduled to lift off on Saturday. But if Endeavour doesn't leave Alpha on time, the Soyuz launch might have to be delayed a day or more.

NASA doesn't want the Russian craft to dock with Alpha while Endeavour is still attached to the station because the Soyuz would come very close to the shuttle's tail, said shuttle flight director Phil Engelauf.

NASA said mission managers had been talking to the Russians about delaying the Soyuz flight and that a meeting would be held Friday to discuss the situation.

Tito of California reportedly paid the Russians about $20 million for a trip to the space station.

Cosmonauts, space tourist ready for blastoff
April 25, 2001
Endeavour docks with space station
April 21, 2001
Report: NASA agrees to let tourist go into space
April 20, 2001
Shuttle closing in on space station
April 20, 2001
Shuttle lifts off on mission to 'arm' Alpha
April 19, 2001
Alpha crew makes room for guests
April 18, 2001
Space stat

NASA
International space station Alpha

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