WASHINGTON — A report Friday on astronaut health and behavior appeared to undermine NASA's assertions for the past two decades that its work culture has been changed to put more value on workers' concerns about the safety of spaceflights.
NASA supervisors approved launches despite advice from agency physicians, called flight surgeons, that shuttle astronauts were unfit to fly, according to the report commissioned by NASA director Michael Griffin.
Two of the occasions involved warnings from flight surgeons and fellow astronauts that a crew member was drunk, the report said, and they were among cases in which "major crew medical or behavior problems were identified to (NASA leaders) and the medical advice was disregarded."
Speaking by telephone during a NASA press conference in Washington, Air Force Col. Richard Bachmann Jr., who chaired the report committee, said flight surgeons found
NASA's treatment of their advice " 'demoralizing' to the point where (they) said they would be less likely to report concerns in the future."
The report appeared to contrast with NASA's assurances after the Challenger explosion in 1986 and the breakup of Columbia in 2003, both of which killed astronaut crews, that the agency had accomplished an internal "culture change." In the new environment, officials said, workers were encouraged to speak out without fear of reprisal about safety concerns even when they conflicted with majority opinions.
NASA officials denied Friday that it had dismissed physicians' opinions that astronauts were unfit for launch.
Deputy Administrator Shana Dale said the agency takes safety issues very seriously and had dispatched Bryan O'Connor, chief of safety and mission assurance, to Johnson to interview astronauts about the allegations of alcohol use — and make sure the team is prepared for its next space shuttle launch, scheduled for Aug. 7.
Griffin asked for the report, by a committee of civilian and military experts in behavioral health, in the wake of astronaut Lisa Nowak's arrest in Florida in February. Nowak was charged with attempted kidnapping in a bizarre confrontation with a rival in an astronaut love triangle.
Along with the report, an internal review at Houston's Johnson Space Center, said no one at NASA realized Nowak was troubled before the incident. (The Navy has since transferred her from NASA). But, the report said, better behavioral health evaluations of astronauts could provide early intervention, if needed, in the future.
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NASA supervisors approved launches despite advice from agency physicians, called flight surgeons, that shuttle astronauts were unfit to fly, according to the report commissioned by NASA director Michael Griffin.
Two of the occasions involved warnings from flight surgeons and fellow astronauts that a crew member was drunk, the report said, and they were among cases in which "major crew medical or behavior problems were identified to (NASA leaders) and the medical advice was disregarded."
Speaking by telephone during a NASA press conference in Washington, Air Force Col. Richard Bachmann Jr., who chaired the report committee, said flight surgeons found
NASA's treatment of their advice " 'demoralizing' to the point where (they) said they would be less likely to report concerns in the future."
The report appeared to contrast with NASA's assurances after the Challenger explosion in 1986 and the breakup of Columbia in 2003, both of which killed astronaut crews, that the agency had accomplished an internal "culture change." In the new environment, officials said, workers were encouraged to speak out without fear of reprisal about safety concerns even when they conflicted with majority opinions.
NASA officials denied Friday that it had dismissed physicians' opinions that astronauts were unfit for launch.
Deputy Administrator Shana Dale said the agency takes safety issues very seriously and had dispatched Bryan O'Connor, chief of safety and mission assurance, to Johnson to interview astronauts about the allegations of alcohol use — and make sure the team is prepared for its next space shuttle launch, scheduled for Aug. 7.
Griffin asked for the report, by a committee of civilian and military experts in behavioral health, in the wake of astronaut Lisa Nowak's arrest in Florida in February. Nowak was charged with attempted kidnapping in a bizarre confrontation with a rival in an astronaut love triangle.
Along with the report, an internal review at Houston's Johnson Space Center, said no one at NASA realized Nowak was troubled before the incident. (The Navy has since transferred her from NASA). But, the report said, better behavioral health evaluations of astronauts could provide early intervention, if needed, in the future.
Discuss Add this link to... Bury
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