Mission 1604

 Mission 1604: The Solar Alternative, the theme of this mission, was inspired by the idea of finding new ways to power the space station. Solar panels were attached to the roof and used to power lights on the bridge. The goal; to eventually switch all of the computers over to DC powered laptops that could be powered by solar power. This would make the mission mobile creating more opportunities for CASA.

There were many new additions to CASA this year along with the solar panels. The blue screen, created by Anthony Paggett and Ryan McNeil, produced backgrounds that made the simulation come alive. CASA can now place people anywhere in the world without having to spend a dime. Weather reports were also done for the first time with the use of the blue screen, helping to create a more realistic launch scenario. An EVA suit was even created in order to do space walks outside of the station.

A Soyuz launched successfully with three people on Monday Feb 23 rd 2004 starting the mission off with a bang. The first tasks were to fix HAL and set up solar power. Student directors once again ran the mission starting off with Ramone Hernandez  followed by Jimmy Janes, Sherman Chancellor, Kirstin Novosel, Stefan Novosel, Emily Orscheln, and Chris Johanning.

Role playing was a factor this year in Mission 1604. While only dabbled in last year, many parts, such as the head of the Department of Defense played by Alex Wegener, the head of the Discovery Accident Investigation Board played by Abby Hendren, and the head of NASA played by Kelsey McClure, were followed up throughout the entire mission adding many new twists and turns. Foreign languages were used again as well. With the help of Lindsey Cook, a French teacher and Bob Brady a German teacher, the CASA students translated foreign languages to English to decode satellites, start up the station, and fix the main water pump.  

   The SOBEs came alive with the gruesome talented work of moulage artists Emily Hawks and Liz Nixon. One of the biggest most exciting SOBEs this year that caused a lot of commotion was when the main water pipe busted. There was a leak in the 35 degree loop because of rust in the pipes. The astronauts had to translate instructions from German to English to replace the pipes, motors, and electrical wires. The SOBE took all of Thursday and for the first time in CASA history the simulation was continued into the night, after hours, to fix the problem. Overall, the best thing about the SOBE was getting to watch the astronauts struggle to fix something they had never dealt with before while being sprayed with water.

Mid-mission trouble was stirred up with France and Russia. Communication problems caused mission control to drop satellite Polar in Moscow destroying half of the city and satellite Pegasus in France demolishing the Arch De Triumph. Both the ambassadors of France and Russia were furious and the incident even caused the US to be unable to obtain a second Soyuz from Russia. Mission control then had problems with the Discovery Accident Investigation Board and the Department of Defense. Shuttles were grounded when a report was not turned in on time due to the mishaps that had taken place the last few days. At the same time the Department of Defense became furious because a shuttle was needed to go into space to launch a satellite.  

The X-38 was used for the first time during the mission. Pilot Bill Knowles knowingly risked his life to save three others. The X-38 was the only way to return the injured astronauts back to earth. Bill landed the X-38 safely and became a hero.

 The mission ended successfully. The Eros asteroid and a Star Wars satellite from the Department of Defense sent up to destroy the Eros asteroid were headed toward the space station and the outcome would have been disastrous if actions were not taken. The Star Wars satellite successfully destroyed the asteroid and everyone remained safe.