Tim Kyger, on an Electrolite message board:
One other thought. Two words: Space Station.
There are three humans waiting on board *Alpha* for a ride home. Yes, they've got a lifeboat attached; a Soyuz. But they've been in free fall for about four to five months now (I forget the exact figure). The rentry g-load for a Soyuz is gonna be 8 to 9 gees (versus the peak 1.5 g load during a Shuttle landing — Story Musgrave stood UP during the entire rentry of his last Shuttle mission). I worry about their ability to get back without a lot of injury.
