[FPSPACE] So what can we make of these stories from Yi?

[Jens Kieffer-Olsen]

Keith Gottschalk kgottschalk at uwc.ac.za wrote: 
Sun May 4 08:53:10 EDT 2008 

> While Yi gets anti-inflammatories, or traction to stretch her spine,
> until something stops pinching a nerve, we can make one comment.  
> FPSPACErs have pointed out that even normal Soyuz landings are "very
> rough"; never mind ballistic or supra-ballistic trajectories.

 Two questions present themselves.

 1. Why did NASA continue to allow astronauts regular Soyuz landings
    after the space shuttles came back in service? Do they consider
    the tile-inspected shuttle a hazard anyway, such that the much
    reduced comfort suffered during the Soyuz landing is balanced off?

 2. Assuming that the Soyuz commander is seated in the middle, is it
    always the 'guest' cosmonaut who gets the seat most exposed at the
    time of a rough landing?  If so, is it smart that the least
    experienced spaceperson onboard takes the hardest toll?

--
Jens Kieffer-Olsen
Slagelse, Denmark