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SpaceX and Boeing are actively preparing for the first crew launches of their commercial vehicle, and In case of problemthey simulate different types of emergency.
NASA has signed a contract with both companies to provide commercial satellites for missions to the International Space Station (ISS), in addition to the Russian Soyuz satellite currently used for all launches of the Station, which take off from an installation from Baikonur, Kazakhstan. The first commercial astronauts will fly late this year or 2020, if all goes as planned. SpaceX and Boeing will each launch their satellite from Florida. This is the first time US astronauts have left their home country since the last Space Shuttle mission in 2011.
SpaceX and NASA are gearing up for the first launch of a Dragon Crew with astronauts on board with a general rehearsal of launch day – including simulated emergency situations. NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, who will be piloting the first Crew Dragon mission, trained at a SpaceX facility in Hawthorne, California, with SpaceX's ground surveillance team. NASA and SpaceX teams conducted a simulated countdown, as well as several emergency launch scenarios, which is common practice for all astronauts preparing for spaceflight.
Related: The SpaceX laboratory test on the crew Demo-1 in flight test in pictures
Some of the first Boeing CST-100 Starliner The crew also conducted emergency launch scenarios at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida. NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, who will be part of the first Starliner crew, participated in the exercise, as well as Eric Boe (initially assigned to a Starliner mission, but fired for medical reasons in January) and astronaut candidate Jasmin Moghbeli (who is completing certification exercises to qualify for future space flights).
Our @Commercial_Crew program is making progress in launching US astronauts to @Space_Station. Check out our rehearsals to safely retrieve the crew members of the @SpaceX Space Shuttle #CrewDragon that will transport the astronauts to and from the space: https://t.co/0k1PovEqKA pic.twitter. com / km24W9FfhfAugust 18, 2019
What's up with our @Commercial_Crew astronauts? @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug have recently completed fit and leak tests using the same ground support equipment used for launching @ SpaceX's Demo-2 mission. Follow their training: https://t.co/irbF3GDaC3 pic.twitter.com/lqIsMGWjYIAugust 8, 2019
Astronauts and ground personnel followed a complicated set of procedures to ensure safety in case of a sudden emergency on the plateau, such as a rocket explosion. Such an event can only offer a few seconds to react, so it is necessary to practice everything in advance. During the exercise, participants donned portable respirators and practiced moving from the crew's access arm to the 60-meter spacecraft to a zipline. they slipped to a meeting place on the ground.
Once everyone reached the ground safely, they rushed inside a vehicle designed to withstand the debris of a disaster. The team drove the so-called mine-protected, ambush-protected vehicle for nearly a kilometer and a half (1.6 km) to a helipad, where air surgeons and Emergency personnel were ready to carry ambulances and decontamination vehicle.
Emergency response personnel surround an astronaut with simulated injuries during an exercise conducted by NASA, Boeing and United Launch Alliance on July 24, 2019.
(Image credit: NASA / Ben Smegelsky)
"Astronauts evacuating from an emergency can come into contact with dangerous substancessuch as rocket or spacecraft fuel, and must be decontaminated to allow medical personnel to treat them safely. In case of emergency, any injured person would then be transported by helicopter to hospitals in the area, "NASA said. statement about the Boeing exercise.
Another exercise was devoted to recovery operations with SpaceX, using a ship called "GO Searcher, "which is one of the ships that will capture spacecraft and astronauts after a mission in the Atlantic Ocean." In this exercise, the teams simulated that Behnken and Hurley were to be extracted from Crew Dragon. were removed and received a fictitious medical assessment prior to their transportation to a nearby airport, the Cape Canaveral Air Base.
. @ NASA led a simulation with @BoeingSpace and @ulalaunch for upcoming crew flights to @Space_Station. In case of emergency, astronauts and support teams will have to leave the launch pad as soon as possible: https://t.co/lG6ZspSztG pic.twitter.com/UAgbmm6UZIAugust 5, 2019
"We are making sure that the team integrates together – that is the key to any successful mission," said Ted Mosteller, recovery director at NASA, responsible for the team. agency team for the commercial crew program, in a statement. statement regarding recovery operations. "We have worked successfully to do what we need to do to take care of the crew once they return to Earth."
In the same statement, Behnken said that he was looking forward to his opportunity to fly into space and return to the ISS. "Each of these exercises brings us closer to NASA's mission to bring astronauts back to International Space Station American soil, "he added.
Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
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