| “Why not
metric? -- During the course of reviewing the Space Station's FD&D Groundrules
and Constraints, it became evident that there were going to be more and
more trajectory-related interfaces between FD&D and metric-using international
partners (Russia, now ESA, probably also Japan), along with the already-known
metric users at USSPACECOM. Mr. Oberg raised the question of why, despite
high-level policy pronouncements in its favor, NASA-JSC was not switching
to the metric system, particularly in such critical areas as FD&D where
bad conversion and user unfamiliarity lay the foundation for future operations
errors. Since FD&D measures are not connected with Space Station structural
measures (which can retain English measures without impacting FD&D operations),
Mr. Oberg suggested that to avoid future data exchange slip-ups, FD&D
should take this current but soon closing "window of opportunity"
to convert all Space Station trajectory-related activities to metric.
|