Questions tagged [crewed-spaceflight]
Crewed spaceflight (also referred to as human spaceflight or manned spaceflight) is space travel with a crew aboard the spacecraft. When a spacecraft is crewed, it can be operated directly, as opposed to being remotely operated or autonomous.
670
questions
35
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Why is there currently so little talk about a Venus gravity assist for a crewed Mars mission?
I just came across this video about manned Mars and Venus missions that were planned in the 1960s. They considered a Venus flyby the best way to get humans to Mars. Indeed, there are also modern ...
- 2,073
6
votes
2
answers
336
views
What have astronauts used rolls of Kapton tape for?
An image (also below) in an answer to the question "How often is duct tape used during crewed space missions?" shows a roll of the gray stuff next to a roll of Kapton tape, aboard the ...
- 47.3k
12
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Cyanobacteria as Life Support?
I'm aware that cyanobacteria are responsible for the Great Oxidation Event and are very effective at turning CO2 into oxygen so it stands to reason that with the proper nutrients for the bacteria, you ...
- 467
32
votes
3
answers
9k
views
Why do astronauts wear spacesuits during launch?
I have noticed that astronauts in every launch I've found wear a spacesuit during launch, like this example from the shuttle.
I don't understand this. What kind of problem could cause loss of cabin ...
- 854
2
votes
1
answer
261
views
What solution does SpaceX plan so to make it possible for the crew to get out from Starship on other planets, considering the cabin's elevation?
What solution does SpaceX plan so to make it possible for the crew to get out from Starship on other planets, considering the cabin's elevation? Will they use some kind of rope ladder?
- 3,077
1
vote
0
answers
45
views
Is CO + O ==> CO2 a possibility for propelling rockets off Mars? [duplicate]
Perseverance, the Mars rover, includes an experiment called MOXIE. This is a technology demonstration to show that Mars' atmospheric carbon dioxide can be broken into carbon monoxide and oxygen. ...
- 3,764
11
votes
1
answer
1k
views
What is the procedure in case the ISS loses one of the evacuation crafts?
Suppose that a micrometeorite or a sudden failure renders one of the Soyuz inoperable, or that a routine inspection discovers a defect in one of them that makes it unsafe.
What is the protocol to ...
- 920
9
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Soyuz for Sale?
Reading through some stuff on the interwebs I came across some information saying that some old Soyuz Capsules are keep in a junkyard. Does anyone know if it's actually possible to purchase one of ...
- 467
16
votes
2
answers
2k
views
When was the last time that an incandescent light bulb was launched into space?
Certainly the first crewed spacecraft had some incandescent light bulbs for indicators, though for cabin illumination the higher efficiency of fluorescent lights was often exploited. The question ...
- 149k
21
votes
1
answer
893
views
What paper size do they use on the International Space Station?
We know they have at least one printer on the ISS – that's NASA-supplied so it would be in the US Orbital Segment. Presumably there is a printer in the Russian Orbital Segment as well. (Mir had a ...
- 369
5
votes
1
answer
89
views
How does NASA build acclimatisation into mission plans for astronauts?
I was reading an article today where NASA admits some level of culpability contributing to a crew issue on SkyLab in 1973.
Nasa accepts that mission planners had not given the crew the typical period ...
user38625
-2
votes
1
answer
114
views
What is super heavy booster? What will it be used for?
Also called BN1, right?
Please explain me what is booster and what will it be used for?
Also feel free to give me additional insights other than included in my question about BN1.
- 547
5
votes
1
answer
273
views
Was the Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle supposed to be crewed?
NASA studied another space tug design, termed the Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle (OMV), along with its plans for Space Station Freedom. The OMV's role would have been a reusable space vehicle that would ...
- 47.3k
8
votes
1
answer
813
views
What does the Moon's gravity feel like? If you don't move, could you still tell you're on the Moon?
I am interested in descriptions and discussion from the Apollo astronauts.
Almost all animals and many plants are sensitive to the earth's gravitational field. This is important for large mammals and ...
- 3,764
2
votes
0
answers
67
views
What do the double- or triple-checkers do when a launch is not scheduled?
Leading up to every manned launch, there is personnel dedicated to making sure their colleagues do everything correctly in accordance to checklists they usually have on hand.
See for example the ...
- 4,992
1
vote
0
answers
76
views
Soyuz TMA Neptune IDS Button Lights Behavior On Click
I made a simple virtual Soyuz TMA Neptune IDS using simple coding (a work in process). The purpose of it is solely for the buttons location familiarization of the control panels. The buttons react on ...
- 11
8
votes
0
answers
53
views
Are there any sites that have collection of Bellcomm Inc. memos?
Bellcomm Inc was contracted by NASA to provide alternate and hypothetical launch vehicles, spacecraft, and missions. The memos combine the right blend of technical detail without heavy mathematics ...
- 81
23
votes
4
answers
3k
views
What is "mission design"? What do mission designers do (if such a designation exists)?
The question in meta Is the mission-design tag description wrong? Should the trajectory-design tag be somehow nixed? needs some attention, so I thought I'd turn to our "panel of experts" ...
- 149k
8
votes
2
answers
591
views
Flying around on a fire extinguisher
It's in many movies... the astronaut grabs a fire extinguisher and uses it to propel themselves around. It's even in the Shuttle operations manual (2.2-9)
"Consideration should be given to the ...
- 4,565
14
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Why is it so hard to build crewed rockets/spacecraft able to reach escape velocity?
Why are we still not going farther than to Low Earth Orbit? Orbital velocity is about 4.8 mi/s (7.7 km/s) and escape velocity is about 7 mi/s (11.2 km/s), about 45% faster. Why is it so hard to reach ...
- 274
1
vote
0
answers
77
views
Why does Falcon 9 launch with Crew Dragon solar panels facing down?
I noticed in video of the first crewed mission in August that Falcon 9 pitches down with the Dragon solar panels facing down.
I'd been expecting the solar panels to be facing up, because sun.
Does ...
user36480
2
votes
0
answers
36
views
Avoiding Martian contamination with Earth microbes
Unmanned probes can be sterilized, but when humans begin occupying Mars in large quantities, how can contamination of possible Martian microbes with Earth microbes be avoided?
- 51
3
votes
1
answer
237
views
Is it really possible to catch the Super heavy booster by using the launch tower ? How Challenging will it be?
Reports say that SpaceX now aims to recover the Super heavy booster by catching it with the help of the launch tower. What are the engineering challenges for this and how will it benefit ?
News ...
10
votes
10
answers
3k
views
Robotics & Space Missions; Why is the physical presence of people in spacecraft still necessary?
Robotics is now well developed. Many programming languages allow you to work in real-time. Also, a new era of space missions and research is in full swing.
So here's the question: Why is the physical ...
- 325
3
votes
1
answer
94
views
NASA design handbooks and specifications
Does anybody know the designations, publication names, etc. for the design standards which NASA uses for space flight hardware? I’d like to add these resources into my engineering library.
- 383
6
votes
1
answer
363
views
Why is a seated posture for astronauts preferred over a standing posture?
Crewed spacecraft for travel to/from Earth, and much speculation for the SpaceX Starship, have seats with the astronauts upper body level in an eyeballs in orientation. This is because this is the ...
- 161
5
votes
0
answers
116
views
How close a crewed spacecraft could orbit Jupiter?
How close could a crewed spacecraft orbit Jupiter?
I read that Juno was as close as 5,000 km from Jupiter's top clouds, but I'm wondering about a spacecraft with humans inside (provided it's protected ...
- 51
5
votes
0
answers
60
views
Is there a publicly available inventory of things sent to the ISS?
I spent some time looking through NASA datasets and news articles, and couldn't find anything, so I'm hoping that someone in the community will know better than I do:
I'm trying to understand what the ...
- 3,035
2
votes
1
answer
225
views
What would happen if the crew launched to dock with the ISS were incapacitated?
Suppose a spacecraft lifted off from the space center and within few minutes after reaching the 200 kilometers altitude on its way to the ISS, and for some reason the crew were incapacitated. Will ...
- 131
35
votes
8
answers
13k
views
What led NASA et al. to decide the ISS should be a zero-g station when the massive negative health and quality of life impacts of zero-g were known?
As the month of November 2020 has marked 2 decades of the ISS being operational as well as the first operational flight of a next-generation spacecraft to it, I felt it fit to ask this question today. ...
- 626
2
votes
1
answer
163
views
Kerbal Gone Wild - Could a DIY team create a Mercury-scale orbital capsule?
Given how much engineering has advanced since the days of the Mercury program, could a similarly scaled single-person orbital vehicle capable of repeatedly sustaining 48 hours in orbit realistically ...
- 21
1
vote
1
answer
134
views
What was the furthest distance from Earth that Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins reached in Apollo 11?
An estimate is fine. But if possible, I am looking for a reference that I can cite.
- 139
-1
votes
2
answers
235
views
What timezone would be used for interstellar travel?
The ISS crew celebrated Thanksgiving today.
Apparently the ISS uses Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is equivalent to Greenwich Mean Time.
What timezone would people use for interstellar travel?...
- 535
5
votes
1
answer
101
views
Does the SpaceX Crew-1 commander have any command duties while docked at the station?
The SpaceX Crew-1 mission itself has a commander who is in charge, I suppose, during transit and landing. The ISS also has a commander. Does the commander of crew 1 have any command duties while ...
- 6,180
21
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Why is the SpaceX crew-1 mission more important than the previous one (demo-1)?
The previous one was also crewed (two crew) but it was called "demo" for some reason - despite taking astronauts to the ISS. How is the recent one different?
- 415
1
vote
4
answers
230
views
Are crewed spacecraft missions that appear stationary from the ground possible?
I've looked at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacecraft and the following question arose.
For crewed spacecraft missions, can a spacecraft remain stationary in the sky i.e. not moving once launched ...
- 373
36
votes
3
answers
11k
views
Why were the SpaceX Crew-1 astronauts backed up by guards with automatic weapons?
The photo in NPR's 4 Astronauts Aboard SpaceX Crew Dragon Successfully Dock With Space Station shows the four astronauts standing in front of a serious-looking military vehicle flanked by at least two ...
- 149k
36
votes
1
answer
5k
views
What are these shiny wrist plates worn by astronauts in the SpaceX crew capsule
What are these shiny wrist plates worn by astronauts in the SpaceX crew capsule?
screen shot from the NASA YouTube video Watch NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 Mission Arrive at the International Space Station
- 363
6
votes
2
answers
387
views
Are there active proposals for the next large space station (post-ISS) to use artificial gravity?
The ISS has supported a crewed presence in space for twenty years now and while parts have been added over time, key original components are 20+ years old.
Crewed presence is usually limited to a half-...
- 578
15
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Just how much rope have different crewed missions been given?
Answer(s) to What was Apollo "Moon rope" made out of? Was it ever used? are not completely definitive at the moment, but a comment on an answer caught my eye:
Rope is such a multipurpose ...
- 149k
6
votes
2
answers
2k
views
How are astronaut nametags printed when their family name is first?
It is traditional in English and Russian to print a person's given name before their family name. However, there are some languages where that order is reversed.
When flying on an American or Russian ...
- 47.3k
1
vote
0
answers
119
views
g-forces entering and leaving atmospheres, how would they vary from one body to another?
I was wondering how launching from and returning into atmospheres of other bodies such as Mars, Venus, Titan, etc. would differ from Earth's.
Specifically, I am wondering how many g's would be ...
- 277
6
votes
1
answer
281
views
The Russian space module named Spektr
Watching Away I learn about a Russian “ghost story”, which is about an air leak within a space station's module named Spektr leading to a distinct hissing noise (air leaking into space). How can this ...
- 277
0
votes
1
answer
153
views
Intercommmunication between crewed space missions in all planets of solar system [closed]
As we know Human Communication taking place between Man in space, Man on Moon, Man on Mars (Future exploration) with Human beings on Earth planet where we are living with the help of control stations ...
- 373
3
votes
1
answer
185
views
Have capsule-free taxi spacecraft ever been seriously considered for non-emergency use?
Capsules are heavy, but necessary.
Or at least, they are necessary for launch, landing, and stays in space lasting more than an hour or two.
But it is possible to imagine situations where cosmonauts ...
2
votes
2
answers
245
views
What mission is this Chris Hadfield photo associated with and what is the location? And what is that thing?
Many, many astronauts have gone on to be wonderful orators, educators, advocates for science, education and positive thinking, Major Tom Colonel (ret) and (fmr) ISS Commander Chris Hadfield is just ...
- 149k
8
votes
1
answer
336
views
Can they still make espresso on the ISS? If so, with what?
This comment suggests that the origional ISSpresso machine may no longer be running on the ISS.
Is that so? If so, can they still make espresso on the ISS? If both are so, with what do they make it?
- 149k
18
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Tea bags to find the leak on the International Space Station?
Katya Pavlushchenko (@katlinegrey)'s tweet says:
Here’s some of today’s news from the ISS. First of all, the leak was finally found (thanks to the tea bag). Anatoly Ivanishin sent photos to the ...
- 149k
2
votes
1
answer
139
views
Flight characteristics of a three-passenger rocket with a range of up to 500 miles (800 km)?
If I could bring two of my best friends to a spaceport and take a rapid trip to a city hundreds of kilometers away (think half an hour to cross a continent), what would would be the vehicle's flight ...
- 59
3
votes
0
answers
169
views
In Crew Dragon do the astronauts feel like flying upside-down?
When looking at Crew Dragon flight paths diagrams I saw that for phasing burns and deorbit burns they don't use the side thrusters, as I would expect, but four thrusters mounted at the "top" ...
- 327