NASA Press Briefings
Shuttle-Mir managers held many press briefings during the course of the program to answer the media's questions and explain situations to the public. Of particular interest are several press briefings held during the time of astronaut Mike Foale's experience with the collision and depressurization. These press briefings' summaries and links are listed below.
On Thursday, July 17, 1997, Frank Culbertson, NASA Program Manager of the Shuttle-Mir Program, gave a status update and discussed plans for the upcoming EVA.
On Friday, July 18, Frank Culbertson, NASA Program Manager of the Shuttle-Mir Program, gave a status update and answered questions from the press.
On Monday, July 21, 1997, Frank Culbertson, NASA Program Manager of the Shuttle-Mir Program, Paul Dye, Lead Flight Director for STS-86, which would be the next scheduled Shuttle-Mir docking mission, and astronaut Greg Harbaugh, acting Manager of the EVA Spacewalk Project Office at JSC, gave a status update and answered questions from the press.
On Tuesday, August 12, 1997, after the launch of the Mir-24 crew on a Soyuz, Frank Culbertson, NASA Program Manager of the Shuttle-Mir Program, gave a status update and answered questions from the press.
On Wednesday, August 20, 1997, Deputy Director of the Shuttle-Mir Phase I Program, Jim Van Laak, and Astronaut Greg Harbaugh, the Acting Manager of the EVA Project Office at JSC, gave a preview of a scheduled spacewalk on Mir. They also iscussed other developments regarding the latest situation aboard Mir, and answered questions from the press.
On Thursday, September 4, 1997, Frank Culbertson, NASA Shuttle-Mir Phase 1 Program Manager, Greg Harbaugh, Acting Manager of the EVA Project Office at JSC, and Mike Hess, EVA Systems Officer, gave a preview of a scheduled spacewalk and answered questions from the press.
On Thursday, September 25, 1997, Dan Goldin, NASA Administrator, announced that he had made the decision that the STS-86 mission to the Mir should go forward as planned. He, Thomas Stafford, and Thomas Young answered questions from the press.
