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Recently, an anxious nation watched the Space Shuttle Discovery return our nation to flight, and many relaxed their vigil only when Commander Eileen Collins called out "wheels stop" on the runway at Edwards Air Force Base. This first post-Columbia flight was extremely valuable and successful.
The mission also made it clear that NASA's approach to launch decisions, making important mission and safety-related decisions, and its ongoing public accountability have also evolved. NASA is in transition with a new vision, new Administrator and new environment. After the Columbia tragedy, some said America should abandon manned missions. This would mean the U.S. would never finish the International Space Station (ISS), would abandon our commitment to international partners and cede the research and security prowess that has defined our nation for 50 years.
Too many risks have been taken, successes achieved, new technologies developed and historic moments created to weaken our commitment to retaining our nation's space preeminence. Brave astronauts have sacrificed their lives for the future of space exploration believing it is essential to our country's future.
As we explore the unknown, the information gathered millions of miles away and work done to prepare and conduct space-based research has direct and positive applications in our daily lives. Technology invented through space exploration is used in hospital cardiac care units. Scientists have developed new chemotherapy treatments. Space technology has led to the production of air bags that save lives everyday. Devices firefighters used to cut through exposed steel at ground zero following the September 11 attacks were the outcome of shuttle technology. New oxygen regulators helping firefighters breathe safely were invented based on research conducted on the ISS. These are just some of many examples of added benefits our investment in space exploration has provided us.
Those benefits will only multiply as we proceed with research planned for the ISS. In order to complete the assembly of the research station, we must be able to continue to fly the space shuttle, which is the only vehicle capable of carrying these heavy pieces.
The U.S. has invested over $25 billion to develop and maintain the space station. Our scientific and international partners have also made large investments in the ISS over the past 16 years. It would be regretful for this nation to fail to meet our international and scientific commitments by turning away from completion of the ISS at this point. Too many resources would be wasted and too many potential discoveries lost.
Clearly, we need the research about the effects of long-term exposure to the space environment on humans done on the ISS to prepare for the return to the Moon and eventual missions to Mars. That research provides knowledge and helps us understand and also treat common medical problems of a similar nature, such as osteoporosis, muscle atrophy and bone demineralization.
Developments evolving through current research being conducted on the ISS include an advanced diagnostics ultrasound which can assist with diagnosis of bone marrow loss and muscle atrophy. Autonomous robotic arms have been developed which can be applied to fields ranging from human-collaborative medical surgery, physical therapy, rehabilitation and emergency response to chemical, biological and nuclear materials.
Over 80 such experiments have already been conducted aboard the ISS or are underway
-- showing real results with direct application to improving life and health for all of us on Earth.
I have passed legislation through the Senate to ensure the maximum return on our nation's investment in the ISS by designating the U.S. portion as a National Laboratory Facility. This designation provides a mechanism to identify creative ways in which non-NASA participants can join the space station research community and potentially bring non-NASA funding and expertise to help support and sustain the ISS as a functional laboratory.
The ISS can be the vehicle for increased cooperative research activities between the National Institutes of Health and NASA, between University-based consortia and both commercial and international research partnerships. These new assets can enable NASA to concentrate its limited resources on pursuing the exploration of the Moon and eventually Mars.
The number of nations with human space flight capability is growing. Recently, China launched its second manned flight into space. If we stall, we risk relinquishing our leadership role in space exploration. This will affect our capabilities in science, technology and medicine.
NASA’s investment in engineering, science and mathematics helps the U.S. compete with foreign countries and is key to ensuring our nation’s future will be prosperous and secure. Even more, our willingness to support space research will determine if we will have the most capable military in the world through the 21st Century.
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