NASA is taking steps to make spacewalking on an asteroid a reality.
In the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) near the agency's Johnson Space
Center in Houston, engineers are testing a modified version of the
pumpkin-orange Advanced Crew Escape System (ACES) worn by space shuttle
astronauts during launch and reentry for use by future crew in the Orion
spacecraft.
As the agency plans human deep space missions, including a voyage to a
relocated asteroid, care is being taken to efficiently use space inside
Orion. The white Extravehicular Mobility Unit spacesuits used by crews
to conducts spacewalks on the International Space Station are too bulky
to carry in the spacecraft, so NASA is looking at ways to alter the ACES
suits for multiple uses both inside and outside the spacecraft.
"The shell of them is very much the same, and to the casual user you
may not even notice the difference, but internally we modified them to
work with the plumbing inside Orion," said Dustin Gohmert, Crew Survival
Systems Manager at Johnson.
Through a series of tests in the NBL, engineers are learning what
features need to be included to improve the suit's mobility beyond the
needs of the trip from the launch pad to space and its return to Earth,
such as enhanced gloves and elbow joints with improved mobility for
spacewalks.
The ACES pumpkin suit was worn by space shuttle crews beginning in
1994 and builds on the earliest spacesuit worn by Ed White during the
first venture outside a spacecraft in 1965.
"We're stepping back to our heritage to be able to use one suit for multiple tasks," said Gohmert.
NASA is looking at a broad range of ideas and techniques as the
agency further refines its mission design for the agency's asteroid
initiative, an effort that combines human exploration, space technology
and science work being done across the agency to find and redirect and
asteroid to a stable orbit near the moon for exploration by astronauts.
The NBL tests are helping with the evaluation of options for
spacewalking techniques like how best to get out of Orion and traverse
the spacecraft toward the captured asteroid. NASA is making use of
previous experience and proving designs to accelerate development,
ensure crew safety and increase reliability.
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