SPACECRAFT PREFLIGHT PREPARATION
Spacecraft preflight preparation for mercury project
MERCURY PROJECT↗
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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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Comments on preflight training for Gemini V.
Preflight planning and training stages for Gemini V, considering spacecraft test, mission simulators, planetarium, survival and parachute training, etc
MISSION PLANNING↗
Pre-flight testing of the ATS-1 thermal coatings experiment.
Preflight testing of ATS-1 Thermal Coatings Experiment /TCE/, discussing cup designs, sensor and cup calibrations, etc
PROTECTIVE COATING↗
Some computer applications in Saturn stage checkout.
Computer applications in checkout of individual Saturn stages and in prelaunch checkout of complete Saturn vehicle
PRELAUNCH TESTING↗
Apollo experience report: Photographic equipment and operations during manned space-flight programs
The evolution of crew-operated photographic equipment and the procedures for manned space-flight photographic operations are reviewed. The establishment of program requirements is described. Photographic operations are discussed, including preflight testing and inflight operations.
Kuehnel, H. A.↗
Atmospheric density (surface)
The variation of the density of the atmosphere at the surface from the average for any one station, and between the areas of interest, is small and should have no important effect on preflight spacecraft operations. The median density at the surface for five test ranges is given.
Daniels, G. E.↗
Apollo Soyuz test project press kit: USA-USSR
The goals and program of the mission are described. Operations from preflight crew training through splashdown are included. Spacecraft and launch vehicle configurations are given. The 27 joint and unilateral experiments to be performed are described. A flight plan and a schedule of activities is included, together with brief crew biographies. The ground support system is discussed; it includes control centers in Houston and Moscow, and an ATS satellite to relay ground-air-ground communications. The global tracking network and the television transmission system are also described.
Source record↗
Handheld space sextant Operating manual
Handheld space sextant and preflight battery charger and test equipment - operating manuals
OPTICAL INSTRUMENT↗
Opportunities for Launch Site Integrated System Health Engineering and Management
The launch site processing flow involves operations such as functional verification, preflight servicing and launch. These operations often include hazards that must be controlled to protect human life and critical space hardware assets. Existing command and control capabilities are limited to simple limit checking durig automated monitoring. Contingency actions are highly dependent on human recognition, decision making, and execution. Many opportunities for Integrated System Health Engineering and Management (ISHEM) exist throughout the processing flow. This paper will present the current human-centered approach to health management as performed today for the shuttle and space station programs. In addition, it will address some of the more critical ISHEM needs, and provide recommendations for future implementation of ISHEM at the launch site.
Waterman, Robert D.↗
Extended Aging Theories for Predictions of Safe Operational Life of Critical Airborne Structural Components
The previously developed Ko closed-form aging theory has been reformulated into a more compact mathematical form for easier application. A new equivalent loading theory and empirical loading theories have also been developed and incorporated into the revised Ko aging theory for the prediction of a safe operational life of airborne failure-critical structural components. The new set of aging and loading theories were applied to predict the safe number of flights for the B-52B aircraft to carry a launch vehicle, the structural life of critical components consumed by load excursion to proof load value, and the ground-sitting life of B-52B pylon failure-critical structural components. A special life prediction method was developed for the preflight predictions of operational life of failure-critical structural components of the B-52H pylon system, for which no flight data are available.
Ko, William L.↗
An Induced Environment Contamination Monitor for the Space Shuttle
The Induced Environment Contamination Monitor (IECM), a set of ten instruments integrated into a self-contained unit and scheduled to fly on shuttle Orbital Flight Tests 1 through 6 and on Spacelabs 1 and 2, is described. The IECM is designed to measure the actual environment to determine whether the strict controls placed on the shuttle system have solved the contamination problem. Measurements are taken during prelaunch, ascent, on-orbit, descent, and postlanding. The on-orbit measurements are molecular return flux, background spectral intensity, molecular deposition, and optical surface effects. During the other mission phases dew point, humidity, aerosol content, and trace gas are measured as well as optical surface effects and molecular deposition. The IECM systems and thermal design are discussed. Preflight and ground operations are presented together with associated ground support equipment. Flight operations and data reduction plans are given.
Miller, E. R.↗
Women's Health Issues in the Space Environment
Women have been an integral part of US space crews since Sally Ride's mission in 1983, and a total of 40 women have been selected as US astronauts. The first Russian female cosmonaut flew in 1963. This presentation examines the health care and reproductive aspects of flying women in space. In addition, the reproductive implications of delaying one's childbearing for an astronaut career and the impact of new technology such as assisted reproductive techniques are examined. The reproductive outcomes of the US female astronauts who have become pregnant following space flight exposure are also presented. Since women have gained considerable operational experience on the Shuttle, Mir and during EVA, the unique operational considerations for preflight certification, menstruation control and hygiene, contraception, and urination are discussed. Medical and surgical implications for women on long-duration missions to remote locations are still evolving, and enabling technologies for health care delivery are being developed. There has been considerable progress in the development of microgravity surgical techniques, including laparoscopy, thoracoscopy, and laparotomy. The concepts of prevention of illness, conversion of surgical conditions to medically treatable conditions and surgical intervention for women on long duration space flights are considered.
Jennings, Richard T.↗
Fault Management Techniques in Human Spaceflight Operations
This paper discusses human spaceflight fault management operations. Fault detection and response capabilities available in current US human spaceflight programs Space Shuttle and International Space Station are described while emphasizing system design impacts on operational techniques and constraints. Preflight and inflight processes along with products used to anticipate, mitigate and respond to failures are introduced. Examples of operational products used to support failure responses are presented. Possible improvements in the state of the art, as well as prioritization and success criteria for their implementation are proposed. This paper describes how the architecture of a command and control system impacts operations in areas such as the required fault response times, automated vs. manual fault responses, use of workarounds, etc. The architecture includes the use of redundancy at the system and software function level, software capabilities, use of intelligent or autonomous systems, number and severity of software defects, etc. This in turn drives which Caution and Warning (C&W) events should be annunciated, C&W event classification, operator display designs, crew training, flight control team training, and procedure development. Other factors impacting operations are the complexity of a system, skills needed to understand and operate a system, and the use of commonality vs. optimized solutions for software and responses. Fault detection, annunciation, safing responses, and recovery capabilities are explored using real examples to uncover underlying philosophies and constraints. These factors directly impact operations in that the crew and flight control team need to understand what happened, why it happened, what the system is doing, and what, if any, corrective actions they need to perform. If a fault results in multiple C&W events, or if several faults occur simultaneously, the root cause(s) of the fault(s), as well as their vehicle-wide impacts, must be determined in order to maintain situational awareness. This allows both automated and manual recovery operations to focus on the real cause of the fault(s). An appropriate balance must be struck between correcting the root cause failure and addressing the impacts of that fault on other vehicle components. Lastly, this paper presents a strategy for using lessons learned to improve the software, displays, and procedures in addition to determining what is a candidate for automation. Enabling technologies and techniques are identified to promote system evolution from one that requires manual fault responses to one that uses automation and autonomy where they are most effective. These considerations include the value in correcting software defects in a timely manner, automation of repetitive tasks, making time critical responses autonomous, etc. The paper recommends the appropriate use of intelligent systems to determine the root causes of faults and correctly identify separate unrelated faults.
O'Hagan, Brian↗
ISS Technology Demonstrations for Future Spaceflight Medical Systems
Throughout the history of human spaceflight, crewmembers have experienced various in-flight medical conditions including illness and injury. Planned missions to the Moon and Mars will require capabilities to maintain the health of future space travelers. Mass, power, and volume available in the vehicles and habitats for these missions will be severely constrained; resupply of resources will be limited or non-existent, as will opportunities for evacuation to Earth. Furthermore, ground-based support will be hampered by communication latencies and blackouts. These vehicle and mission constraints will necessitate a medical system that has been efficiently planned, providing on-board procedural guidance in addition to a variety of medical devices and consumable resources. Medical capabilities required for the diagnosis and treatment of potential medical conditions during future spaceflight missions may include real-time health monitoring, medical imaging, and biomarker analyses ( e.g., blood or urine). Terrestrial medicine shares these needs, thus many of these medical capabilities could likely be satisfied by Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) devices and methodologies; however, in some cases the unique space environment and increased mission duration will drive the need to modify technologies and the way care is provided. NASA’s Human Research Program (HRP) Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) Element and Mars Campaign Office’s Exploration Medical Integrated Product Team (XMIPT) are working together to decrease medical risk during exploration missions. Flight-tested medical diagnostic and treatment technologies are necessary to effectively manage medical conditions relevant to exploration missions while meeting vehicle constraints, integrating with medical decision-support tools, and enabling increasingly Earth-independent operations. Several projects have leveraged the ISS as a testbed for exploration, including 1) i n- situ blood analysis, 2) medical inventory, 3) intravenous fluid generation, and 4) autonomous medical procedure guidance. Management of several in-flight medical conditions, such as bacterial and viral infections and acute radiation syndrome, is dramatically improved with ability to assess blood cell populations, electrolytes, and metabolites. I n December 2020 and January 2021 ExMC performed an ISS technology demonstration (Tech Demo) of the HemoCue® WBC DIFF analyzer (HemoCue, Brea, CA), a COTS device that was modified to enable functionality in a spaceflight environment. This Tech Demo marked the first time that hematology measurements were successfully performed real-time in microgravity. Also modified and demonstrated was the reusable Handheld Electrolytes and Lab Technology for Humans (rHEALTH) ONE analyzer (rHEALTH, Bedford, MA), which uses flow cytometry and sheath-based hydrodynamic focusing methodologies. The rHEALTH ONE ISS Tech Demo in May 2022 demonstrated test results obtained in-flight matched those on the ground. NASA currently relies on crew self-reporting to manage and maintain medical inventory on ISS.The ability to maintain an accurate inventory becomes more critical during long duration missions since the crew will need to be increasingly autonomous in finding and utilizing medical items, including those scenarios when alternative treatments need to be considered due to limited or no resupply. HRP’s Medical Consumables Tracking (MCT) project was developed by ZIN Technologies, Inc. (Cleveland, OH), and demonstrated real-time tracking of medical supplies aboard the ISS between December 2016 and July 2018. The MCT system design utilized Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID) technology to perform automated inventory and was installed in the Crew Health Care System (CHeCS) Resupply Stowage Rack (RSR). The challenge of limited shelf life, exacerbated by the lack of resupply opportunities, affects a plethora of medical system components including consumables, pharmaceuticals, and intravenous (IV) fluid. In 2010, ExMC funded ZIN Technologies, Inc. (Cleveland, OH), to develop the Intravenous Fluid Generation (IVGEN) system. IV fluids were successfully generated with IVGEN using the potable water supply on ISS during ISS Expedition 23. The XMIPT is in the process of developing a miniaturized version of the original IVGEN hardware for a future Tech Demo aboard the ISS. Current ISS medical operations rely heavily on preflight training and real-time remote guidance, both of which become impractical or impossible for exploration missions. The primary goal of the Autonomous Medical Officer Support (AMOS) Software Tech Demos on ISS was to confirm telemedical proof-of-concept for autonomous medical imaging in an operational setting. This novel software tool shifts emphasis from preflight training and real-time remote guidance to in-flight just-in-time instruction, a new and necessary paradigm for crew medical autonomy. AMOS introduces a novel, streamlined skill management concept for exploration missions featuring comprehensive training and guidance modules for ultrasound examinations using the ISS Ultrasound 2 (a modified GE Vivid-q™; General Electric HealthCare, Chicago, IL). With no prior crew training or remote guidance, two Tech Demos on the ISS (April 2020 and June 2022) resulted in high quality, clinically useful image sets. We will provide a review of historical, current, and planned medical devices and technologies considered for inclusion within future spaceflight medical systems and summarize hardware development activities and medical device tech demos conducted on the ISS.
Astronaut health and performance↗
Modified Universal Design Survey: Enhancing Operability of Launch Vehicle Ground Crew Worksites
Operability is a driving requirement for next generation space launch vehicles. Launch site ground operations include numerous operator tasks to prepare the vehicle for launch or to perform preflight maintenance. Ensuring that components requiring operator interaction at the launch site are designed for optimal human use is a high priority for operability. To promote operability, a Design Quality Evaluation Survey based on Universal Design framework was developed to support Human Factors Engineering (HFE) evaluation for NASA s launch vehicles. Universal Design per se is not a priority for launch vehicle processing however; applying principles of Universal Design will increase the probability of an error free and efficient design which promotes operability. The Design Quality Evaluation Survey incorporates and tailors the seven Universal Design Principles and adds new measures for Safety and Efficiency. Adapting an approach proven to measure Universal Design Performance in Product, each principle is associated with multiple performance measures which are rated with the degree to which the statement is true. The Design Quality Evaluation Survey was employed for several launch vehicle ground processing worksite analyses. The tool was found to be most useful for comparative judgments as opposed to an assessment of a single design option. It provided a useful piece of additional data when assessing possible operator interfaces or worksites for operability.
Blume, Jennifer L.↗
Viking navigation
A comprehensive description of the navigation of the Viking spacecraft throughout their flight from Earth launch to Mars landing is given. The flight path design, actual inflight control, and postflight reconstruction are discussed in detail. The preflight analyses upon which the operational strategies and performance predictions were based are discussed. The inflight results are then discussed and compared with the preflight predictions and, finally, the results of any postflight analyses are presented.
Oneil, W. J.↗
Electrophoresis tests on STS-3 and ground control experiments - A basis for future biological sample selections
Static zone electrophoresis is an electrokinetic method of separating macromolecules and small particles. However, its application for the isolation of biological cells and concentrated protein solutions is limited by sedimentation and convection. Microgravity eliminates or reduces sedimentation, floatation, and density-driven convection arising from either Joule heating or concentration differences. The advantages of such an environment were first demonstrated in space during the Apollo 14 and 16 missions. In 1975 the Electrophoresis Technology Experiment (MA-011) was conducted during the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project flight. In 1979 a project was initiated to repeat the separations of human kidney cells. One of the major objectives of the Electrophoresis Equipment Verification Tests (EEVT) on STS-3 was to repeat and thereby validate the first successful electrophoretic separation of human kidney cells. Attention is given to the EEVT apparatus, the preflight electrophoresis, and inflight operational results.
Morrison, D. R.↗
Space Shuttle navigation validation
The validation of the guidance, navigation, and control system of the Space Shuttle is explained. The functions of the ascent, on-board, and entry mission phases software of the navigation system are described. The common facility testing, which evaluates the simulations to be used in the navigation validation, is examined. The standard preflight analysis of the operational modes of the navigation software and the post-flight navigation analysis are explained. The conversion of the data into a useful reference frame and the use of orbit parameters in the analysis of the data are discussed. Upon entry the data received are converted to flags, ratios, and residuals in order to evaluate performance and detect errors. Various programs developed to support navigation validation are explained. A number of events that occurred with the Space Shuttle's navigation system are described.
Ragsdale, A.↗