NASA is calling for the Mir space station to be de-orbited as planned this summer. The US space administration is concerned that plans for commercialising the Mir is diverting Russian attention and funds from the International Space Station (ISS) and contributing to delays of the latter.
The space administration is "not pleased with the performance and attitude" of the Russian company RSC Energia, which is behind the scheme to keep the Mir in orbit, says NASA administrator Dan Goldin.
Amsterdam-based MirCorp has received authorisation from Energia to lease Mir for space tourism, in-orbit advertising, industrial production and science. MirCorp has the rights for the commercial use of Mir for the rest of the space station's life.
The organisation helped fund the Progress M-1 tanker mission to Mir earlier this month and will part-fund the flight in April of possibly three cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz TM craft for a 45-day stay aboard the station.
Energia's president Yuri Semenov says his company is exploring "a new path in our efforts to attract commercial funds and business to Mir".
Commercial use would cost between $10 million and $20 million, says Jeffrey Manber, MirCorp's president. MirCorp will be a direct link between commercial users of Mir and the station's operators, with MirCorp taking responsibility for establishing business conditions for the space station's use.
MirCorp's shareholders include Energia and venture capital firms, including Gold&Appel. Its chairman, Walt Anderson, is thought to be the main source of the initial MirCorp investment. Another MirCorp investor is telecommunications and Internet entrepreneur Chirinjeev Kathuria.
Space trips by wealthy individuals are a possibility, but not a focus of the business, says MirCorp. Individuals would have to undergo gruelling cosmonaut training.
Under the lease agreement, Russian researchers will be allowed to use part of the Mir at no extra cost. The Russian Government says that it will de-orbit the space station if no funds are forthcoming, but the MirCorp connection is likely to extend the Mir's life to at least 2001.
Source: Flight International
