ESA Astronaut Luca Parmitano is training for his upcoming trip to ISS in September, which includes getting used to his Orlan and Sokol spacesuits. Here, Parmitano explains the differences between these suits and how he expects to use them. Loading… For those who are wondering, Orlan translates as a sea eagle, Sokol is a falcon. Staff WritersMore Posts
Post Tagged with: “spacesuit”
The Crew That Never Came Home: The Misfortunes of Soyuz 11
By Ben Evans In the early hours of 30 June 1971, the Soviet Union prepared to welcome its three latest cosmonaut heroes back to Earth after a record-breaking mission. Not only had the Soyuz 11 team—Georgi Dobrovolski, Vladislav Volkov, and Viktor Patsayev—spent more than 23 days in orbit, but they had also successfully occupied the world’s first true space station. [...]
NASA Reports Micrometeoroid Handrail Risk on ISS Solved
As International Space Station Expedition 35 undertakes a challenging series of extravehicular activities, they face one hazard that may not immediately come to mind: micrometeoroid damaged handrails. The problem of micrometeoroids and small debris impacts in space is well known. The station is shielded to prevent the dings and dents it receives from damaging critical systems. Spacewalkers’ suits are shielded [...]
Scientists Develop Nano-suit to Enhance Survival in Vacuum
Scientists have developed a thin polymer membrane, or nano-suit, that enhances survival in vacuum. Takahiko Hariyama of the Hamamatsu University School of Medicine in Japan and his colleagues have found that bombarding creatures with electrons causes a thin polymer membrane to form around them, protecting them from the harsh conditions of vacuum. The experiments were conducted on fruit fly larvae. When the larvae were put in a vacuum, [...]
Paragon Contracted to Develop MarsOne Life Support System
MarsOne, the non-profit organization aiming to create a colony on Mars, by landing 4 astronauts in 2023, has contracted its first aerospace supplier, Paragon Space Development Corporation. “We are extremely proud to have been selected by the Mars One team to provide such a vital role on the project,” states Grant Anderson, Paragon Chief Engineer and Co-Founder. “The objective of [...]
Faster than Expected: Baumgartner’s Jump Exceeded Expectations
The three month’s analysis of data regarding the historic jump of Austrian adventurer Felix Baumgartner has brought interesting results. During his supersonic fall from the edge of space, Baumgartner was hurtling even faster than previously calculated. The final data were made public as a part of a comprehensive report issued on February 5, 2013. What are the revised figures then? [...]
NASA’s Z-1 Spacesuit
NASA’s current spacesuit was designed in 1982 and upgraded in 1988. Although an improvement over prior versions, such as that used for lunar missions that severely restricted mobility and visibility, materials technology has come a long way since the 1980s. NASA’s new suit, the Z-1, is expected to provide a boost in functionality and comfort, taking advantage of Russia suit [...]
Early Spacesuit Vacuum Test Goes Wrong
What happens when a spacesuit depressurizes in vacuum? On December 14, 1966, NASA spacesuit technician and test subject Jim LeBlanc found out. Suited up in an early Moon suit prototype, he entered a triple-doored vacuum chamber. Then, his pressurization hose somehow became disconnected and LeBlanc became the only person to survive near-vacuum pressures when his suit dropped from 3.8 psi to [...]
Severe Weather Delays Baumgartner’s Launch to Tuesday
The much awaited launch of the world’s most celebrated B.A.S.E. jumper Felix Baumgartner to an unprecedented altitude has been postponed from the morning of Monday October 8 to, most likely, Tuesday morning. Baumgartner arrived at the Roswell Red Bull Stratos launch site in New Mexico on Friday to begin launch preparations when the professional meteorologist Don Day delivered the news of a 24-hour [...]
ISS Crew Gears Up for Spacewalks
Astronauts and cosmonauts living on the International Space Station will perform two spacewalks in August. On Monday, August 20, the first team, a Russian duo, will conduct their spacewalk, followed ten days later, on August 30, by a second team – an American and Japanese astronaut. These are the only planned extravehicular activities (EVA) for the current Expedition 32 mission. “Things [...]
