NASA’s Office of Audits, which falls under the control of the Office of Inspector General, has released a report on 27th March, which has showed a long list of infractions related to the storage and handling of so-called “energetic materials.” These materials are generally fuels and high explosives, used for launches, tests, and deep space operations. Additionally, the report has [...]
Post Tagged with: “Safety”
Remembering Columbia
February 1st 2013 will be the 10th anniversary of one of the most significant events in the history of human spaceflight: the Columbia accident. This anniversary is a poignant reminder of the costs of neglecting space safety. The loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia and its entire STS-107 crew is one of the most catastrophic events in the modern space [...]
New ESA Safety Standard Now Available
The European Space Agency (ESA) has just issued Safety System Engineering: Safety Technical Requirements for Human Rated Space Systems, a new human spaceflight standard. Chapter 1 describes the scope of the document: This document establishes the requirements applicable to the development and operations of human‐rated space systems for ESA human spaceflight missions. These requirements are intended to protect the public, the ground [...]
*Now Extended* 6th IAASS Conference Final Call for Papers: Safety is Not an Option
The 6th IAASS International Space Safety Conference “Safety is Not an Option“ will be hosted by the McGill University in Montreal (Canada) on 21-23 May 2013. The IAASS conference is the primary gathering of international experts in the field of safety and sustainability of space missions from launch to reentry, on-orbit operations, debris removal, human commercial and governmental spaceflight, etc. “Usually about [...]
Space Safety Magazine, Issue 5, Fall 2012
Inside the Fall 2012 Issue of Space Safety Magazine The International Space Safety Foundation Advisory Council Neil Armstrong and Sally Ride: Their Safety Legacy Curiosity: The Path to Success Legal Issues of Space Debris Remediation Falling Free from the Edge of Space Tai Chi: Taking Wellness to Space Taking Potentially Hazardous Asteroids Seriously Commercial Human Spaceflight Safety in the 21st [...]
US Examines Perchlorate Safety
Ammonium Perchlorate, the primary oxidizer used in solid rocket boosters, will potentially face new regulation from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Chronic exposure to perchlorate, which also occurs naturally and is present as an impurity in nitrogen fertilizers as well as used in other pyrotechnic applications, can impede thyroid iodide uptake. Exposure to humans mainly occurs through drinking water [...]
Federal Aviation Administration to Hold Talks With Commercial Space
The US Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST) is charged with registering and regulating commercial spaceflight. When it comes to commercial crew ventures, such as the plethora of suborbital tourism companies that have sprung up across the US, AST has been charged with a hands-off role. Taking a watch and learn approach, AST is merely responsible for [...]
IAASS Conference 2013 “Safety is Not an Option”: Call for Papers
Welcome back to Space Safety Magazine! We are glad to announce that the sixth IAASS international space safety conference “Safety is Not an Option” will be held 21-23 May, 2013, at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. The conference, organized in cooperation with the International Space Safety Foundation (ISSF), Mc-Gill University, and the Canadian Space Agency, is an invitation to reflect and exchange information on a number space safety and [...]
NASA/FAA Agreement May Strengthen NASA Influence on Spaceflight Safety
On June 18, NASA and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced an agreement to align commercial spaceflight requirements between the two agencies and to clarify which agency governs under what circumstances. The announcement follows from a memorandum of understanding signed by the agencies on June 4 that lays our rough working guidelines for the collaboration. The industry tradegroup Commercial [...]
Revision to NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Enhances Safety Oversight
A revision to the Commercial Crew Program gives NASA enhanced authority over commercial partners’ safety protocols. The move away from Space Act Agreement contracts for final phase design and testing comes after repeated criticism of the practice from both politicians and safety experts. In a public letter in March, several US Congressmen urged that NASA be given authority over commercial spaceflight [...]
