The American space agency (Nasa) is considering privatising its fleet of space shuttles in an attempt to save money.

America's space agency Nasa - once a synonym for US high-tech supremacy - is struggling for survival. In the last few days, it has lost its chief, been revealed to have a staggering $5 billion debt, and been blasted by a committee, which includes several Nobel laureates, for its utterly inept management.

A computer hacker endangered shuttle astronauts in 1997 by overloading NASA's communication system, according to the BBC. The hacker tapped into NASA's computer system that monitors the heartbeat, pulse and medical condition of astronauts aboard the spacecraft. NASA reports that they have been subject to over 500,000 cyber attacks in the last year.