From: yee@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee)
Newsgroups: sci.space.news
Subject: NASA and Russian Space Agency sign space agreements [Release 92-165] (Forwarded)
Date: 6 Oct 92 23:35:49 GMT
Followup-To: sci.space
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Apparently-To: sci-space-news@ames.arc.nasa.gov

Debra J. Rahn
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                               October 6, 1992
(Phone:  202/358-1639)


RELEASE:  92-165

NASA AND RUSSIAN SPACE AGENCY SIGN SPACE AGREEMENTS

	NASA and the Russian Space Agency (RSA) have signed two cooperative
agreements in Moscow, in the areas of human space flight and Mars
exploration.

	"Signing these two agreements is the next crucial step in expanding
cooperative space activities with our Russian partners.  We are very anxious to
begin working on these important programs," said NASA Administrator Daniel
S. Goldin.

	The Human Space Flight Agreement outlines the flight details of a
Russian cosmonaut on the U.S. Space Shuttle, the flight of a U.S. astronaut on
the Russian Mir Space Station and a joint mission including the rendezvous
and docking of the Space Shuttle with the Mir Space Station.

	The Mars '94 agreement is for the flight of two U.S./NASA scientific
instruments on the Russian Mars '94 lander.

	The agreements were signed by Administrator Goldin and RSA Director
Yuri Koptev during the first annual U.S./Russian Space Policy Consultations.

	Ambassador Frank Wisner, Under Secretary of State, headed the U.S.
delegation and met with Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials to review
the U.S./Russian space relationship.

Human Space Flight Cooperation Agreement

	An experienced cosmonaut will fly aboard the STS-60 Space Shuttle
mission, scheduled for launch in November 1993.  RSA has nominated Col.
Vladimir G. Titov and Sergei K. Krikalev as the two cosmonauts who will
undergo mission specialist training.

	One cosmonaut will be designated the prime crewmember and the
other designated backup crewmember.  The cosmonauts are scheduled for
arrival at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, in October 1992.

	A NASA astronaut will fly on a long-duration (more than 90 days) Mir
Space Station flight.  The flight's timing will coincide with a Shuttle docking
flight in 1995.  The astronaut will be flown to the Mir on a Soyuz spacecraft.
The astronaut's duties will focus on science, particularly life sciences, as well
as engineering and operational objectives.

	Two NASA astronauts will receive full cosmonaut training with their
cosmonaut crewmates at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Facility "Star
City" near Moscow.  They will begin training no later than 12 months prior to
the agreed flight date.  One astronaut will be selected as the prime
crewmember and the other will be designated backup crewmember.

	NASA will transport two cosmonauts in the Space Shuttle to replace the
two cosmonauts on board Mir.  Life sciences experiments, involving the NASA
astronaut and the two cosmonauts on board the Mir, will be conducted while
the Shuttle and Mir are docked.  The NASA astronaut and the two cosmonauts
who have been on the Mir will be returned in the Shuttle to the United States
for continued post-flight life sciences experiments.

NASA Participation in the Russian Mars '94 Mission

	The primary objective of this mission is to carry out further joint
exploration of planet Mars in conjunction with the Russian Mars '94 mission.
This may provide the opportunity for U.S. scientific instruments to be carried
aboard the Russian spacecraft.  This cooperation could significantly enhance
the present Mars '94 mission and provide critical data for future human and
robotic Mars missions.

	One U.S. instrument is the Soil Magnetic Properties Experiment, and
the other is the Soil Reactivity/Composition Experiment.  These will enable
scientists to characterize the Martian physical and chemical surface
environment.

	The soil magnetic properties experiment will use a magnet to collect
and measure the magnetic minerals in the Martian soil.  The soil
reaction/composition experiment will provide chemical information about the
volatile components in the Martian soil.
Newsgroups: sci.space.news