ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 23, 1996 TAG: 9602230055
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CAPE CANAVERAL, FLA.
SOURCE: From The Associated Press and Knight-Ridder/Tribune
Overcoming a brief scare of an engine failure, space shuttle Columbia and seven astronauts blasted into orbit Thursday on a complicated and risky mission to generate electricity by flying a satellite on a 12.8-mile tether.
The shuttle carried dozens of experiments - including a seemingly obscure study that could help victims of Chagas disease, which afflicts 24 million people in Latin America.
In the first, extremely perilous seconds of flight, the crew reported that a red warning light and gauge indicated one of Columbia's three main engines was misfiring.
Flight controllers in Houston quickly determined the engine was fine. The gauge or a computer malfunctioned, they said.
``We're trying to get our hearts back together,'' Mission Control told the crew after the shuttle was in orbit. ``Join the club,'' said shuttle commander Andrew Allen.
It's the second trip into space for the tethered satellite, a half-ton metal ball the crew will try to cast out on Saturday.
Last time the satellite flew, four years ago, the tether jammed and the satellite got no farther than 840 feet from the shuttle. Several problems later were found, most notably a protruding bolt NASA had added at the last minute.
Four astronauts who flew on the 1992 mission are back for another crack at the NASA and Italian Space Agency experiment.
The four Americans, two Italians and one Swiss on the crew have spent nearly two years training in simulators for all sorts of emergencies: a tethered satellite swinging like a wayward pendulum, bobbing like an out-of-control yo-yo, whirling like a skip rope, or just plain stuck.
By taking advantage of Earth's magnetic field, scientists hope to generate 5,000 volts of electricity with the satellite and tether, which resembles a white boot lace and is made of copper, nylon and Teflon. The tethered satellite is supposed to soar above Columbia for two of the 14 flight days.
If the $443 million experiment succeeds, the next step could be a tether that lowers an atmospheric probe from a space shuttle or space station. Tethers also could be used one day to drop experiments to Earth from space stations, and to provide power and lift to stations.
The experiment seeking a Chagas cure is one of many secondary shuttle projects that rarely attract notice but can generate practical benefits.
Chagas, transmitted through an insect bite, attacks various parts of the body, including the heart. It is most prevalent in Central and South America and is a slow but certain killer. No known cure exists.
Simply put, the experiment will attempt to grow extremely pure crystals of a key protein associated with the disease. Then, various drugs - including a few already identified as holding great promise - will be tested on those crystals.
``It seems incredible that such a tiny experiment could affect so many millions of people,'' said Lawrence DeLucas, the project manager. ``No one is paying much attention, but we've done it before. Now, we're trying to do it again.''
A previous shuttle experiment overseen by DeLucas yielded a drug that, in recent tests, blocked every strain of the virus that causes influenza, he said.
If things go well, a flu vaccine or treatment from that research could reach the public within seven years.
``These are real breakthroughs,'' DeLucas said. ``These experiments look small, but they're enormously important.''
LENGTH: Medium: 70 linesby CNB