CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA is considering the possible advantages of extending the space shuttle program.

The agency's administrator has ordered a study to see about extending the shuttle fleet beyond 2010.

Some have rejected the extension saying it could cripple the new system of rockets and capsules that are meant to replace the shuttles in 2015.

The current plan involves using Russian Soyuz spacecraft to fill the gap between the end of the shuttle program and the next generation of NASA craft.