Shuttles: going cheap!

Where will NASA's 3 shuttles be exhibited once the flight programme ends? Information is starting to trickle through. And the cost will be lower than expected…

 

Endeavour on its launch pad in Florida. The shuttle will blast off on 7 February 2010 to accomplish mission STS-130. There are only 5 more flights programmed for NASA's spacecraft, including that one. The final flight is scheduled for September 2010. Credit : NASA/Amanda Diller

In 2008, NASA was asked to think about what would happen to the shuttles Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour once they ceased flying at the end of 2010 and to submit a proposal to America's Congress.

Discovery will go to Washington DC
Back in December 2008, the American space agency organised a call for bids with a view to drawing up a list of "appropriate" (we quote) museums and institutions that could accommodate one of its spacecraft and exhibit it to the general public. It is clear that NASA had no intention of auctioning off machines that are rightfully considered to be symbols of America's space history (and the country's history in general!). Rich collectors therefore don't have a chance. Bidders have to describe how the shuttle will fit into a project that presents the era of manned flights and heightens Americans' awareness of their country's space programme. Obviously, a simple hangar with an entrance ticket will not satisfy NASA. The agency wants its shuttles to enjoy a dignified retirement combined with top-level museography.

The Air and Space Museum in Washington DC is home to Enterprise, which never went into space but was used for testing shuttle behaviour during the gliding phase. As Discovery is due to be exhibited at this museum, some speculate that Enterprise may be lent to another institution. Credit: Smithsonian Institution

It was very soon specified that the Air and Space Museum in Washington DC would be allotted one of the shuttles as a matter of course. Last Friday, a further officiall document confirmed that the capital would receive Discovery, the old lady in the current fleet. It is to be noted that the Air and Space Museum, administered by the Smithsonian Institution financed and managed by the American government, is already home to Enterprise, a shuttle that never went into space, but was used for atmospheric test flights.

From 42 million dollars to 28.8!
To date, twenty or so institutions and museums (above and beyond the Air and Space mentioned above) have officially applied - a relatively high number given the strict specs drawn up by NASA. Leaving the shuttles out in the open air is out of the question. Prerequisites include an enclosed venue boasting controlled hygrometry (humidity levels) and temperature.

Some museums have announced their plans to house a shuttle. Here, the transparent dome in the project for the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York (top) and the more classical hangar at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio. Credit : DR

A cheque for 42 million dollars is also necessary - to pay the agency for "cleaning" the spacecraft in order to remove all dangerous elements (fuel residue, pyrotechnic charge, etc). This sum also includes delivering the shuttle by 747 to the nearest airport (please provide a 3-km runway), but the cost of transport between the airport and the exhibition site remains entirely at the expense of the chosen institution or museum.
Last Friday, however, NASA's asking price dropped spectacularly. In the new document mentioned above (link in the "Find out more" section), the cost of preparation and delivery to the nearest airport has fallen from 42 to 28.8 million dollars. A drop in the bill of 13.2 million dollars, or a reduction of slightly over 30%! Some American journalists have not hesitated to speak of one further effect of the economic crisis.
The agency stresses that the selected takers must prove that they dispose of the total sum necessary to house a shuttle in the way they describe in their application. This is a vital precaution, as it's not difficult to imagine the unease of the entire nation if one of the jewels of its celestial crown were to throne in the centre of an exhibition hall that remains unfinished due to a lack of funds!

The Visitor Complex at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida owns a life-size replica, called Explorer. However, it's hard to imagine the blast-off point for shuttles not having a real version. NASA intends to deliver the first shuttle to a museum by December 2011. Credit: Marie Ange Sanguy

When the new call for bids was launched on 15 January it triggered, as you might imagine, a flurry of speculations: were the projects received after the first call so disappointing that a second round was necessary? More simply, the price review probably meant that the agency had to relaunch the whole procedure, for legal reasons. Bets are on as to where the shuttles will be exhibited. Discovery will definitely "land" in Washington. But what about Atlantis and Endeavour? It's hard to imagine the Visitor Complex at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, from where all of the shuttles blasted off, not having its own authentic model (the Visitor Complex already has a shuttle – but it's a mock-up!). That leaves the third one. And the jury's still out.

Published on 18 January 2010