Space Station

Increased Russian participation in the space station will require additional investments, offsetting much of the $2 billion that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) claims the partnership will save; Russian involvement could expand research opportunities, but the resource benefits to the United States, such as laboratory space, are unclear. The first phase of Russian participation will allow for near-term research opportunities in Russia's existing Mir space station, and the accelerated assembly schedule will provide earlier research capability on the International Space Station Alpha. However, the allocation of the research resources still has to be negotiated among all the space station partners, and some committees that advise NASA on space station research have yet to fully assess the impact of increased Russian participation.

GAO found that: (1) the overall impact of expanded Russian involvement in the space station program will not be known for several months; (2) much of the savings resulting from Russian participation in the space station program will be offset by increased funding requirements; (3) some of the estimated savings may not be attributable to Russian participation; (4) current estimates indicate that much of the savings attributed to expanded Russian participation will not be achieved and expanded Russian involvement could result in little or no net savings; (5) Russian participation in the space station program will substantially increase overall station research resources; (6) although Russian participation will increase near-term research opportunities and accelerate the station's assembly schedule, the degree to which the U.S. research community will benefit from these increased capabilities has yet to be determined; and (7) NASA needs to finish negotiations among all space station partners, ensure the equitable distribution of research resources, and fully assess the impact of increased Russian participation.