WASHINGTON, D WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A window here. Galley over there. Toss in some sleeping quarters. Add curtains, a nice lamp and some Velcro.
What you have is the making of a bed-and-breakfast. A convenient stopover, this high-rise haven could be a snug fit to the International Space Station.
Shelley Harrison, chairman and chief executive officer of SPACEHAB, said that the private company has begun work on a commercially built-and-run module for attachment to the space station.
The plan is to launch the module, called "
Enterprise," in 2003, and dock it to the FGB on the Russian side of the ISS.SPACEHAB and RSC Energia -- a major Russian space hardware provider -- have teamed to make Enterprise capable of supporting multiple functions, including hardware storage and providing a place for commercial experiments.
Space-weary traveler
But one new assignment being studied is transforming the module into a kind of bed-and-breakfast, ideal for the space-weary traveler, Harrison told SPACE.com.
A dedicated ISS
habitation module -- a place to sleep and kick back -- is no longer in NASA's budget. Since budget cuts have also aced out a crew return vehicle, the potential population of the ISS has been reduced to just three people. "That's not much of a station, particularly when we're being told that it takes two and a half to three people just to do housekeeping," Harrison said.
Harrison said the Enterprise could serve as an interim habitation module if docked to the ISS, allowing the sprawling complex to house a six-person team.
"In our last design review, we added another alternative configuration that would allow us to accommodate four people in terms of sleeping quarters, the galley, etc," he said.
Furthermore, the Enterprise package as proposed to NASA comes complete with a second Soyuz docked to one end.
Such a deal. But there's more.
Non-interference basis
Enterprise might help NASA avoid the
rough-and-tumble talk surrounding space sojourner Dennis Tito in the future. "All things being equal and properly coordinated with other member nations, Enterprise would allow for a non-interference situation," Harrison said. "Space tourists could basically reside and do what ever they are going to do in a commercial module, where critical activities involving the station aren't going on."
Beyond tourism
Tourism is not a core part of SPACEHAB's business plan.
"If it happens and when it happens, under the right circumstances, it'll be a bonus," Harrison said.
The company has long been involved in commercial space services. Several space shuttle missions have benefited from SPACEHAB-built habitat modules and cargo carriers.
"We see the Enterprise as a natural evolution of what we've been doing," Harrison said. "I hope that the destination of many space tourists will be our commercial Enterprise."
Work on Enterprise is being supported by company funds at the moment, but the company will need to raise outside capital to complete the module, Harrison said. The price tag is estimated in the $100 million to $150 million range.
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