Clove
12-18-2008, 08:42 AM
Sale: 2 shuttles, at $42M apiece Advocates want one for Brevard
BY JAMES DEAN • FLORIDA TODAY • December 18, 2008
CAPE CANAVERAL -- A Florida retirement home for a shuttle may cost up to $42 million, NASA said Wednesday.
The agency asked museums and organizations willing to foot the bill for ideas about where it could place two of three orbiters after the fleet's planned September 2010 retirement.
NASA estimates that it will cost $28.2 million to clean toxic, volatile chemicals from the spaceships and $8 million to prepare them for display. Ferrying a spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center to its resting spot would cost another $5.8 million.
"We don't feel like taxpayers should be funding the bill to make them safe for public display," NASA spokesman Mike Curie said.
Space Florida, a state agency that promotes aerospace business, is pushing for the Sunshine State to get a shuttle. Representatives recently asked legislators in Brevard and Volusia counties to support a resolution requesting that an orbiter stay in the state. The resolution is being drafted and could be released next month, said Deb Spicer, Space Florida's vice president for communication.
"They have not launched from anywhere else in the world," Spicer said. "For economic development and the tourism industry, it's a perfect fit. Florida should be strongly considered to receive one of the orbiters once they're retired."
State Sen. Thad Altman, R-Viera, wasn't deterred by the price tag. He said the KSC Visitor Complex would be an ideal home for an orbiter and that it has a built-in cost advantage. "We could save $6 million for shipping," Altman said.
He said the state has demonstrated its ability to fund projects such as the Visitor Complex's Apollo/Saturn V Center and Shuttle Launch Experience attraction.
Altman said the required cleanup work gives the Space Coast another edge. "There's no community more qualified to do that kind of work," he said. "We would want to see that work done here."
NASA said shuttle workers would be best suited to handle the work, but the program's budget won't have enough money as funds shift to the Constellation program's moon rockets.
Shuttle Discovery has been promised to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
That leaves Atlantis and Endeavour available to science museums, educational institutions and other organizations capable of displaying the spacecraft indoors, inspiring the public and students -- and raising the cash.
At least six shuttle main engine display "kits" also will be placed nationwide.
The hardware is expected to be available no earlier than late 2011, and NASA doesn't want to ship them later than May 2012. But with nine shuttle missions remaining and uncertainty over the next president's plans for the fleet, the timing could shift.
NASA wants input from interested organizations by March 17.
"I hope that we're aggressive and can keep a shuttle here as part of the visitor experience at KSC," Altman said. "The legacy of the space program is so important, so people can remember where we came from. It helps secure the vision for our future."
Contact Dean at 639-3644 or jdean@floridatoday.com.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20081218/NEWS02/812180321/1006/news01I hear it gets 800 miles to the gallon.
BY JAMES DEAN • FLORIDA TODAY • December 18, 2008
CAPE CANAVERAL -- A Florida retirement home for a shuttle may cost up to $42 million, NASA said Wednesday.
The agency asked museums and organizations willing to foot the bill for ideas about where it could place two of three orbiters after the fleet's planned September 2010 retirement.
NASA estimates that it will cost $28.2 million to clean toxic, volatile chemicals from the spaceships and $8 million to prepare them for display. Ferrying a spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center to its resting spot would cost another $5.8 million.
"We don't feel like taxpayers should be funding the bill to make them safe for public display," NASA spokesman Mike Curie said.
Space Florida, a state agency that promotes aerospace business, is pushing for the Sunshine State to get a shuttle. Representatives recently asked legislators in Brevard and Volusia counties to support a resolution requesting that an orbiter stay in the state. The resolution is being drafted and could be released next month, said Deb Spicer, Space Florida's vice president for communication.
"They have not launched from anywhere else in the world," Spicer said. "For economic development and the tourism industry, it's a perfect fit. Florida should be strongly considered to receive one of the orbiters once they're retired."
State Sen. Thad Altman, R-Viera, wasn't deterred by the price tag. He said the KSC Visitor Complex would be an ideal home for an orbiter and that it has a built-in cost advantage. "We could save $6 million for shipping," Altman said.
He said the state has demonstrated its ability to fund projects such as the Visitor Complex's Apollo/Saturn V Center and Shuttle Launch Experience attraction.
Altman said the required cleanup work gives the Space Coast another edge. "There's no community more qualified to do that kind of work," he said. "We would want to see that work done here."
NASA said shuttle workers would be best suited to handle the work, but the program's budget won't have enough money as funds shift to the Constellation program's moon rockets.
Shuttle Discovery has been promised to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
That leaves Atlantis and Endeavour available to science museums, educational institutions and other organizations capable of displaying the spacecraft indoors, inspiring the public and students -- and raising the cash.
At least six shuttle main engine display "kits" also will be placed nationwide.
The hardware is expected to be available no earlier than late 2011, and NASA doesn't want to ship them later than May 2012. But with nine shuttle missions remaining and uncertainty over the next president's plans for the fleet, the timing could shift.
NASA wants input from interested organizations by March 17.
"I hope that we're aggressive and can keep a shuttle here as part of the visitor experience at KSC," Altman said. "The legacy of the space program is so important, so people can remember where we came from. It helps secure the vision for our future."
Contact Dean at 639-3644 or jdean@floridatoday.com.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20081218/NEWS02/812180321/1006/news01I hear it gets 800 miles to the gallon.