Second Malaysian In Space?!?!
It seems that our government caught the space bug. I’m not saying that bad. But this piece of news is. In Malaysiakini quoting from NST, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Jamaluddin Jarjis said that the backup astronaut that didn’t go up this time will be in the next 2 years.
This is just plain nuts! Why? Consider this argument voiced in The Star when I was home. “So this alternate guy gets to go up, then what about his alternate?” So on and so forth…
Our minister also says, our next angkasawan will hopefully be “doing a space walk or conducting repairs to the spacecraft”?!?!
Yeah right.
Repairs? Spacewalks? Either way, dream on sir. For a wide host of reasons, an EVA’s out of the question. Same goes for conducting serious repairs. Consider just this. ISS is an international project with NASA, Roskosmos, ESA and JAXA as the main partners (no prizes for guessing who calls the shots). Do you think that they’ll allow a M’sian to help in the construction or repairs? National pride aside, this isn’t a construction project that needs relatively cheap and unskilled labor (no offence intended). Dr. Faiz can train with NASA astronauts, but we’ll have to pay and he’ll have to get out of the way if something goes wrong. If he’s the one who broke it…well…let’s not go there.
Sure, NASA (quite reluctantly) allowed Roskosmos to bring up space tourists (at USD 20 million each) only so that the Russian agency can continue operating in post-Soviet times. That’s because the only other option would be NASA directly footing Roskosmos’s bills. Even if NASA wanted to, a Congressional act bans this, thanks to Iran (if memory serves correctly). Given Russia’s newfound wealth thanks to rising oil prices, the current space tourism programme could be scrapped as funds become available again. It’s not impossible, as space tourism is really an insult to Russian national pride. By scrapping it, then Russia will not have to worry about being held responsible if something breaks with a space tourist on board the ISS and its pride will be restored to its old glory. Then our angkasawan will be stuck on Earth without a ride to hitch for a mission that isn’t much to begin with.
That will be overwhelmingly humiliating to us all.
October 13th, 2007 at 9:35 am
ROTFLMAO!!!!! I’m not surprised that such an absurd comment came from our minister. EVA’s my ass!!!! They’d be happy if they even let him touch the flight controls on the shuttle in space!
October 14th, 2007 at 12:30 am
Wait, go on the shuttle? Hahahahaha. Cannot lah, the only way we’re going to go up is if the Russians are nice enough to give us the 3rd seat. And they’ll be nice when we show them enough greens.