Up in space, multimillionaire traveler Dennis Tito is making history, but down on Earth, U.S. and Russian officials are waging a public relations war over space tourism.
During a presentation to members of the U.S. Congress, NASA chief Dan Goldin criticized the first privately paying space adventurer while praising the delays of aspiring amateur astronaut and director James Cameron.
Tito, currently orbiting Earth aboard the International Space Station (ISS) thanks to a ride on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft, got his trip to orbit in the "wrong way" and is causing stress at the U.S. space agency.
"The current situation has put an incredible stress on the men and women of NASA,'' Goldin told members of a U.S. House of Representatives panel on space and aeronautics on Wednesday.
"They are dedicated to safety and Mr. Tito does not realize the efforts of thousands of people in the United States and Russia that are working to protect his safety and the safety of everyone else, taking extraordinary means,'' Goldin testified.
Meanwhile, Russian officials say it's business as usual at the Earth-orbiting habitat, with Tito no hindrance to experiments and operations.
Viktor Blagov, deputy head of flights to the ISS at Russia's Mission Control Center outside Moscow, denied that Tito -- a client of Russian space agency Rosaviakosmos -- hampered work on the $95 billion orbiting laboratory.
Blagov told Ekho Moskvy Radio that it was "far from the truth'' that Tito's voyage had disrupted work on the ISS.
"Everyone is getting on with their work and there have been no complaints from onboard,'' Blagov said. "Tito's presence, according to our data, has in no way harmed the work of either the permanent or visiting crew.
Tensions over Tito's flight have seen relations between Russian and U.S. space officials sink to their lowest since NASA accused the Russian space agency in 1999 of not taking its obligations to the ISS seriously.
No bill yet
Tito, a 60-year-old Californian, paid Russia some $20 million for his trip to space.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the space agencies of Europe, Japan and Canada objected to Tito's flight, saying he was inadequately trained and might dangerously distract the station crew.
On Wednesday, Goldin also told members of Congress that NASA
for any delays Tito's visit may have caused in the ongoing construction of the ISS. According to Interfax, Blagov said he knew nothing about NASA's intention to demand compensation for damage to the ISS development program due to Tito. Russia has yet to receive a bill for extra costs incurred.
Nothing broken yet
Lofted into space on Saturday, Tito arrived at the station Monday. He will stay for six days, then return to Earth aboard an older Soyuz that is about to be retired.
When Russia said they would launch Tito despite objections, the global partners got Tito to agree to pay for anything he breaks in the station, as well as limit his movements to the Russian sections unless escorted and not to sue if he is injured.
So far, Tito has followed the rules and has not broken anything, according to Bob Cabana, NASA's manager for international operations for the space station.
"I've received no reports of any problems; everything's going smoothly,'' Cabana said. "The agreement we had pretty much laid everything out, and I think everything's going fine as far as that's concerned."
In response to congressional questions about the cost -- in money and lost research time -- of Tito's voyage, Goldin said this would be assessed after the mission ends and that Russia had agreed to reimburse these costs.
Cameron approached NASA last year
Unbidden, Goldin brought up Cameron's push for a ride in space, contrasting it favorably with Tito's and calling the director and producer of the hit Titanic' and other films "an American patriot.''
"I'd like to make a contrast here, because there is an American patriot who understood how to do this,'' Goldin said. ''That gentleman's name is James Cameron, who approached me some six months ago and asked about going to space.''
When Goldin told Cameron there was no protocol for screening or training, or even a known time when he might fly, Goldin said the director told him, "I'm going to wait until the partners work things out and then, at an appropriate time, when the ops (operations) tempo isn't high, maybe it's appropriate to go."
Cameron, born in Ontario, Canada, has undergone preliminary testing in Russia to determine his fitness for space travel, and passed, according to Rae Sanchini, president of Lightstorm Entertainment, Cameron's production company.
"He is hopeful, he's very interested,'' Sanchini said in a telephone interview, referring to Cameron's space aspirations. She denied reports that Cameron was within weeks of signing an agreement with Russia for a space flight.
"He's got different goals in mind than Mr.Tito," Sanchini said from Los Angeles. "He wants to go into space to capture imagery...that can excite the masses about space exploration and the efforts of NASA and the Russian Space Agency and furthering that cause.''
advertisement
