U.S. May Tap Russian Space Technology : Science: Some officials say using the former Soviet hardware could save money. Others see security problems.

With funding for space exploration squeezed by the federal budget shortfall, some lawmakers and Bush Administration officials are considering the use of Russian rockets, space capsules and other high-tech hardware to expand the reach of the U.S. space program.

A group of NASA scientists arrived in Moscow last week to inspect a Soyuz space capsule to see if it could be used as a “lifeboat” to carry the crew of the planned Space Station Freedom back to Earth in the event of an emergency.

And a House subcommittee is scheduled to convene hearings later this month on the possibility of appropriating a broad spectrum of Russian space know-how and technology--some of which is considered superior to existing U.S. equipment--for use in America’s space program.

Although some Administration officials say they have serious reservations about such proposals, citing both technical concerns and national security considerations, the concept is winning some unexpected converts.

“It’s clear to everybody that there’s going to be a crunch in terms of the dollars available for the space effort,” said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Long Beach), a staunch conservative who opposed scientific cooperation with the Soviet Union but now favors such ventures with Russia. “One of the ways we can actually eliminate some of the items in our space budget and bring down the cost . . . is to work in cooperation with democratic Russia.”

Rohrabacher is a member of the House Science, Space and Technology subcommittee that will hold the hearing. Other congressional advocates of U.S.-Russian collaboration include Rep. Ralph M. Hall (D-Tex.), chairman of the space subcommittee, and Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), who heads the Senate Appropriations Committee, which funds the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

“I think we would be foolish not to take advantage of the current situation to get every benefit we can from Russian technology,” said Rep. George E. Brown Jr. (D-Colton), chairman of the Science, Space and Technology Committee.

Some Administration officials are voicing concerns about other aspects of U.S.-Russian cooperation.

“It isn’t clear whether the U.S. government ought to be doing anything to continue to maintain the (former) Soviet military space capability,” said one Administration official involved in space issues.

“If you start doing things to bolster or support the (Russian) civil space program, in a very direct way you’re beginning to support their military capability, and you have to decide if that is good or bad,” said the official, who requested anonymity.

The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization, the Defense Department unit that is working on the “Star Wars” missile-defense system, is eyeing a smorgasbord of Russian space technology that could be put to good use in a combined missile shield.

The Russian items that SDIO would like to examine include a space-based nuclear power system, advanced liquid-fuel rockets, an electric propulsion system and high-temperature electric switches, according to a report in the magazine Aviation Week & Space Technology.

So far, requests to import such technology have been opposed by Deputy Secretary of Defense Donald J. Atwood, who, according to one Pentagon official, wants the Defense Department to “speak with one voice” on the issue of importing Russian space technology.

At the U.S. space agency, the Soyuz capsule is not the only piece of Russian hardware of interest to scientists, but it is of the most immediate concern.

NASA’s $30-billion budget for Space Station Freedom, which is scheduled to be completed and capable of supporting a four-member crew by the year 2000, does not include specific funding for a space “lifeboat,” known in NASA jargon as an Assured Crew Return Vehicle.

NASA officials have estimated the cost of developing an ACRV from scratch at about $2 billion. Purchasing a ready-made Soyuz, which could rocket a crew back to Earth in an emergency, would substantially reduce the cost, proponents argue.

In the longer run, NASA officials and American rocket manufacturers are interested in an advanced Russian rocket engine, known as the RD-170, that powers the Zenit rocket. Zenits are used as boosters on a massive Russian rocket known as the Energia, which can propel a payload of more than 200,000 pounds into space.

The most powerful American launch vehicle is the space shuttle, which can lift a maximum of about 45,000 pounds into Earth orbit.

“In general, I think there is serious interest at NASA in the use of (Russian) technology, at least in considering its use,” said Samuel W. Keller, associate deputy administrator of the space agency. “What we would like to do right now is go and understand what it is they have, and where it might fit, because it is not at all clear that their ideas will immediately interface with our hardware.”

Members of Congress have some ideas of their own.

Rohrabacher, for example, would like to scrap a multibillion-dollar program to develop a series of new American rockets, including one that could deliver a payload of 100,000 pounds, and instead contract with the Russians to launch heavy payloads using the Energia.

Rohrabacher said he believes that the United States could dramatically cut the cost of deploying Space Station Freedom by hiring the Russians to launch larger sections of the orbiting space platform with the Energia instead of relying on the space shuttle.

Rep. Dick Zimmer (R-N.J.), another member of the Science, Space and Technology Committee, has suggested that the United States contract for the use of Mir, the Russian space station that has been in orbit for six years, to carry out life science and micro-gravity experiments.

Zimmer has strongly criticized Space Station Freedom as an overpriced “orbiting public works project.” He told the space subcommittee last month that “the savings for the American taxpayer is reason enough to take this option quite seriously.”

Zimmer recently introduced legislation that would make it easier for NASA to negotiate with Russia for acquisition of space technology by eliminating the requirement for a State Department license before talks begin.

Some, like Rohrabacher and Mikulski, suggest that the United States could save money by using existing Russian technology. Others say acquisition of Russian technology would be a reasonable exchange for prospective U.S. aid that the former Soviet republics have requested.