Slide 34 of 99
Notes:
The NASA Concept Definition Team eventually selected the Boeing/Grumman “Power Tower” design as its baseline. It would provide maximized user viewing opportunities, a clear area for Shuttle dockings and versatility in Station growth. The design was also less sensitive to changes in mass caused by the addition of modules to the Station.
The “Power Tower” station's main structure was to be 122 meters tall with 75KW solar panels sticking 41 meters to either side of the centerline. There were nine articulated attachments for external payloads dedicated to Earth and space observation. The initial Station would have had a crew of six working on 12-hour shifts, and feature two US-developed laboratory modules plus two habitation modules. A maximum of 18 hours/week of EVA "spacewalks" would be permitted per astronaut. International modules had not yet been incorporated in the design.
The “Power Tower” assembly schedule would have required 12 Shuttle flights over a three-year period, starting in April 1992. The Space Station would support research in a man-tended capability from April 1993 onwards. But the schedule was already starting to slip as the Office of Management and Budget reduced the Fiscal 1985 budget from $235 milllion to $150 million. The slight reduction increased the total cost to $8.1 billion at 1984 rates ($11.4 billion in current-year dollars).
Boeing's “Power Tower” proposal. The company's Space Station studies were a major factor behind NASA's decision to adopt the design.
