DATE=8/30/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=RUSSIA / MIR (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-253268
BYLINE=EVE CONANT
DATELINE=MOSCOW
CONTENT=

VOICED AT:


INTRO:  The three-man crew of the Russian space 
station Mir say they are in good physical condition 
three-days after returning to earth.  But the Russian 
cosmonauts say it is a mistake to close down the Mir 
and contend there is more important research which 
should be conducted aboard the aging station.  
Correspondent Eve Conant reports from Moscow.

TEXT:  Russian cosmonauts Viktor Afanasyev and Sergei 
Avdeyev, along with Frenchman Jean-Pierre Heignere, 
said at a news conference they were physically 
recovering as expected from their descent back to 
earth. 
 
But for the Russian cosmonauts, leaving Mir was also 
an emotionally draining experience.  Barring a 
surprise infusion of cash, they will most likely be 
Mir's last crew, as Russia's space agency can no 
longer afford to keep the aging Mir in orbit.

Visibly exhausted crew commander Viktor Afanasyev told 
a news conference it is too early to abandon Mir.

            /// ACT AFANASYEV IN RUSSIAN IN FULL AND 
FADE UNDER ///

We are destroying this old station before we have 
created anything new -- he complained -- we should 
preserve what we already have.

He also explained that leaving Mir unmanned could lead 
to possible accidents, such as loss of cabin pressure, 
which could make it uninhabitable for a clean-up crew.  
Commander Afanasyev also warned of possible human 
error on the part of mission ground control, which is 
responsible for safely guiding the unmanned Mir out of 
orbit.

Cosmonaut Sergei Avdeyev, who holds the record for the 
most time spent in space -- more than two-years -- 
says he is disappointed because there is important 
space research that could be conducted on Mir.  For 
example, crewmembers say they witnessed atmospheric 
phenomena prior to the August 17th earthquake in 
Turkey, but that their monitoring equipment was too 
new and untested for them to predict an earthquake.

      /// ACT AVDEYEV IN RUSSIAN IN FULL AND FADE 
UNDER ///

Cosmonaut Avdeyev said -- there is still a lot of 
equipment on board which I am prepared to experiment 
with, but it has not been put into working condition 
yet.

Russia's space agency lacks the money for more 
experiments.  Instead, mission control will soon 
switch off most of Mir's systems, and prepare it for 
its final journey back to earth.  According to plan, 
most of the station will burn up as it re-enters the 
earth's atmosphere. Any remaining parts are expected 
to drop into the Pacific Ocean.

Commander Afanasyev says he is uncomfortable with the 
idea of leaving the station unmanned until its final 
descent.

            /// ACT AFANASYEV IN RUSSIAN IN FULL AND 
FADE UNDER ///

He told the news conference -- it worries me that the 
station is flying out there without us.

The 13-year old space station has hosted more than 
100-people and survived more than 16-hundred 
breakdowns.  But the Russian space agency cannot 
afford to keep the program running and instead will 
focus its attention on a new international space 
station.  

Russian space experts fear losing the Mir also means 
losing their status as leaders in the field of space 
technology.   (SIGNED)

NEB/EC/GE/RAE



30-Aug-1999 12:52 PM LOC (30-Aug-1999 1652 UTC)
NNNN

Source: Voice of America
.