1 of 2 | STS-135 space shuttle Atlantis pilot, Douglas Hurley, right, and STS-135 commander Christopher Ferguson are seen in the Astrovan as they ride to launch pad 39A to board space shuttle Atlantis on Friday, July 8, 2011, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. UPI/NASA/Jerry Ross |
License Photo
Following the recent increase in price per seats in an interstellar flight -- from $65 million to $70 million -- NASA administrator Charles Bolden, is urging Congress to pass the bill that would enable the U.S. Shuttle Program.
"Because the funding for the President's plan has been significantly reduced, we now won't be able to support American launches until 2017," Bolden, a former shuttle commander, wrote in a NASA blog.
If Congress does not support NASA's 2014 request for a Commercial Crew Program, the agency will be forced to renew their contract with Russia, which will result in fees of $424 million to send six astronauts into space.