BY TIM BONFIELD
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Although NASA is confident that a medical emergency involving John Glenn's participation in the Discovery mission is highly unlikely, here are some questions and answers about contingencies:
Q.: Say Mr. Glenn slipped during walkout and broke his hip. Is there an alternate crew member to take his place?
No. The flight would go without him, said chief astronaut Charlie Precourt. If a more vital crew member -- such as the pilot -- suffered a minor illness or injury, the flight might be delayed a few days.
Q.: Say Mr. Glenn had a heart attack on board, who would treat him?
The chief medical officer on STS-95 is Dr. Scott Parazynski, a graduate of Stanford Medical School. On some shuttle flights the CMO is not a doctor, but a crew member specifically trained to use the paramedic equipment and medicines carried aboard the shuttle. In such situations, every move the CMO makes is guided by experts on the ground. The double bonus on STS-95 is that payload specialist Chiaki Mukai is a cardiac surgeon.
If the medical problem cannot be addressed in space, Commander Curtis Brown and ground officials would plan an emergency return to Earth. The very soonest a landing could occur would be within one orbit, which takes about 93 minutes. But that isn't likely, because the crew would need to reprogram flight computers, shut down projects, stow loose gear and plan a return from orbit burn. Once the burn starts, landing occurs in about 45 minutes, Mr. Precourt said.
Q.: Say Mr. Glenn, or any other crew member, actually died during the flight. Would the mission continue?
The mission would end early.
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