THE
Summer Daily
Vol. LXXXIII No. 5-S
Ann Arbor Michigan-Tuesday, May 15, 1973
Ten Cents
Twelve Pages
Sky lab foul-up forces
astronaut launch delay
Space station panels fail to deploy
CAPE KENNEDY, Fla. {kP-A cranky
set of solar power panels failed to deploy
properly yesterday on the $294-million
Skylab space station, forcing a five-day
delay in the launch of the astronauts who
will live aboard the craft.
The decison was announced by the Sky-
lab program director, William Schneider,
after officials evaluated for several hours
the problem with America's first space
station.
The three astronauts, Charles Conrad
Jr., Dr. Joseph Kerwin and Paul Weitz
were told about the decision in their crew
quarters.
THEY WERE to have blasted off today
to link up with the station for 28 days in
orbit. The new launch day for the Skylab
1 crew was set for Sunday.
The 118-foot Skylab, a vital part of a
$2.6 billion science-from-orbit program
that was to eventually include the three
manned launches, was smoothly drilled
into orbit from Cape Kennedy.
But before the craft completed its first
orbit, mission control announced that solar
cell wings, which supply electrical power
to the spacecraft by converting' sunlight,
had failed to deplay automatically.
After studying the problem fir more
than eight hours, space agency officials
announced the delay
"THE LAUNCH of the astronauts has
been recycled for five days to Sunday,
May 20, because of incidents which oc-
curred during the Skylab deployment,"
the announcement said. "This will permit
further evaluation of alternative flight
plans to maximize returns from the Sky-
lab mission."
One plan under study by engineers calls
for borrowing p o w e r from the Apollo
command ship which will ferry the astro-
nauts up to the space cabin. The command
ship has 'two fuel cells which combine
oxygen and hydrogen to create electricity.
The Saturn 1B rocket which was to have
launched the astronauts is poised and
ready on a launch pad, but workers :will
now restart certain parts of the count-
down and bring it to launch readiness
once again on Sunday.
Conrad, Weitg and Kerwin watched- the
flawless launch from a viewing area three
miles from the pad.
A SPOKESPERSON said that after the
problem developed, they retired to their
quarters to listen to comment by mission
control from there.
One set. of solar panels, a. system array-
ed like the blades of a windmill, success-
fully opened. But the second set, which
supplies more than half of the Skylab
power, remained folded against the side
of the space station,
Mission control said data indicates a
fairing on the solar panel may have been
fouled only 63 seconds after liftoff. At this
time in the launch program, the space-
t craft was still climbing toward orbit from
its Cape Kennedy nest,
Skylab, America's first space station,
- made its debut after the most trouble-
free Saturn 5 countdown and launch ever,
officials said.
THE SATURN V rocket carrying the Skylab was launched yesterday at Cape Kennedy. All did not go smoothly, however,
as a set of solar power wings on the Skylab failed to deploy automatically after the craft's first orbit.
FINALLY RESOLVED:
Gill. sweeps toSG
presidenitia 1.-
By DAN BIDDLE an unexpected 74 per cent '"no" vote, but
The second run of Student, Government another key proposal to lower individual
Council's (SGC) controversy-filled all- student SGC assessments from $1 to 75
campus election last night produced a cents per term received an overwhelm-
landslide victory for presidential candi- ing 9-1 approval vote.
date Lee Gill and his Students' Rights The election, held April 23-28 to replace
Party (SRP). the invalidated March vote, received a
Gill, a longtime black activist, and SRP mere 25 per cent turnout.
running mate Sandy Green, an SGC mem- This figure, however, nearly doubled
ber-at-large, led three other SGC presi- the votes cast in the March election, which
dential saltes in final tallies last ni-ht fell victim to massive fraud attempts.
deatte aleai fna alie a ngt With all voe oned las nigh ,
with nearly 43 per cent of the vote. tr ll votes hose ast nght, SGC
SRP took three of the five at-large SGC
seats up for grabs in the election, the President and Vice-President:
Coalition of Liberals and Moderates Party Lee Gill - Sandy Green (SRP) 2522
(CLAMP) running a surprise second in David Faye-Bart Moorstein
both the presidential and Council races. (CLAMP) 1158
A controversial ballot question calling Ro Nagey-Jeigh Brack (Time
for optional SGC funding was swamped by and Space Party) 915
rictory
Mark Schare-Nancy Hackmeier
(Stop Taxation-Open Programs) 695
Ann Missavage '(Mad Hatters'
Tea Party) 694
Members-at-large:
Tara Fujimoto (SRP) . 803
Lisa Fischman (SRP) 633
Roger Mason (SRP) 603
Dick Needleman (CLAMP) 532
Jeff Schiller (CLAMP) 508
Both the Mad Hatters' Tea Party and
Stop Taxation-Open Programs tickets, wait
had backed voluntary funding, were shut
'out in the SRP-CLAMP sweep.
Another ballot proposal favoring restruc
turing of certain parts of SGC's constitu-
tion received clear endorsement with a
90 per cent-plus "yes" vote.