Will the International Space Station get funding beyond 2024?
Two NASA astronauts are performing the first of three spacewalks to fix a robotic arm on the International Space Station. Eileen Collins, the first female Space Shuttle Commander, described what it’s like performing a spacewalk, telling the FOX Business Network’s Maria Bartiromo, “The… thing that’s interesting from the human side is the view that they have, they have an absolutely beautiful view of the earth and it can be a little disorienting at times, so they have to stay focused on what they’re doing.”
According to Collins the space station’s huge size can cause confusion for the astronauts.
“And the other thing about the space station is it’s so big on the outside that you can get lost if you’re not paying attention to where you’re going,” Collins said on “Mornings with Maria.”
Under the Trump administration the National Space Council is meeting for the first time since the early 1990s led by Vice President Mike Pence. Collins sees this as an important step for the future of America’s strategy in space.
“The National Space Council I think is a great idea, that the president and vice president started this up again. Vice president is the chair and this is very, very high level, you have the Secretaries of State, Commerce, Defense and NASA and several other departments are focused on where is the country going as a whole in space, what is our long-term strategy, what are our policies.”
The meeting has particular importance for the space station according to Collins.
“On the civil side you mentioned the space station, right now we are funded, the country has funded our space station til 2024, so the question is, are we gonna go beyond that, we certified it out to 2028, so we know that it’s good enough, it’s safe enough to go to 2028.”