manned space explorations

Manned Space Explorations

Unit 4, Chapter 15, Lesson 15: Manned Space Explorations 2

Manned Space Explorations

• U.S. Manned Space Program

• Soviet Manned Space Program

• Case Study: The Space Shuttle

• Case Study: Space Stations

The Crew of the Challenger Space Shuttle

It exploded less than 2 minutes after liftoff killing the entire crew.

Unit 4, Chapter 15, Lesson 15: Manned Space Explorations SECTION 15.1 3

U.S. Manned Space Program

• American Crews in Space• Project Mercury• Project Gemini• Project Apollo


U.S. Manned Space Program American Crews in Space

• During the years between 1961 and 1975, the U.S. launched a number of manned space flights.

• The U.S. space programs included Project Mercury, Project Gemini, Project Apollo, Project Skylab, and the Apollo-Soyuz joint mission with the Soviets.


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Mercury

• The United States launched its first satellite in 1958. By 1961, the United States was ready to attempt manned space flight. America’s first manned space flight program was called Project Mercury.

• Seven U.S. pilots were chosen as the original astronauts: Scott Carpenter, Gordon “Gordo” Cooper, John Glenn, Virgil “Gus” Grissom, Walter Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Donald “Deke” Slayton. (Figure 15-1)

The Seven Original NASA Astronauts


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Mercury (cont’d)

• Mercury’s mission was to find out if a human could survive space travel and how space travel might affect the human body. Figure 15-2 shows a cut-away view of the Mercury capsule.

• The Mercury capsule was very small but had just enough room for the crew member and all required equipment.

A Cut-away of the Mercury Capsule



• Alan Shepard was the first American in space in a suborbital flight that lasted only 15 minutes on May 5, 1961.

• Figure 15-3 shows that recent space suits look very different from the one Alan Shepard is wearing.

Alan Shepard Suiting-up



• Project Mercury’s third flight was also its first orbital flight. John Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. He remained in orbit for 4 hours and 55 minutes, while orbiting the Earth three times. John Glenn Enters His Capsule, Friendship

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• Project Mercury’s original goal had been to put someone into orbit for one day.– The six flights of the program proved that the

basic flight sequences were sound and that a pilot had a place in orbital flight.

– Astronauts could not maneuver the capsule, they could direct it to its splashdown point.


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Gemini

• Project Gemini’s objectives were to:– Improve methods

needed for a lunar mission.

– Put two people in space.

– Rendezvous and dock with another spacecraft.

– Achieve the first walk in space. The Two-Man Gemini Capsule


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Gemini (cont’d)

• During Gemini’s ten flights, it became the first two-person capsule and achieved the first American walk in space.– Gemini also gathered additional information

about how space flight affects the human body.


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Gemini (cont’d)

• Project Gemini had been designed with two primary goals:– A flight duration of two

weeks.– The development of

methods for a rendezvous in space.

• By the time the missions were completed, the astronauts had the skills necessary to make a Moon landing.

Gemini IV’s Astronaut Ed White’s 22 Minute Space Walk


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Apollo

• Apollo 11 landed on the Moon and on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the Moon. Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin became the second man on the Moon.

• The crew consisted of Neil A. Armstrong, Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin and Michael Collins who stayed in the Lunar Lander while Armstrong and Aldrin walked on the Moon.


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Apollo (cont’d)

Astronauts Collins, Aldrin and Armstrong

Aldrin prepares to step on the Moon

Armstrong on the Moon


U.S. Manned Space Program Project Apollo (cont’d)

• After Apollo 11, there were six more Apollo flights to the Moon.– Five of them resulted in successful Moon

landings. Apollo 13 was aborted due to an explosion in the spacecraft. But the Apollo 13 crew was brought back successfully to Earth.


Soviet Manned Space Program

• Cosmonauts in Space• Vostok• Voskhod• Soyuz


Soviet Manned Space ProgramCosmonauts in Space

• The Soviet Union’s space program developed along the same lines as the American program and occurred at approximately the same time.

• However the Soviets had several firsts in the space race.


Soviet Manned Space Program Vostok

• The Soviets launched the first satellite into space called Spunik.

• The Soviets, having the advantage of larger rockets, launched Major Yuri Gagarin into space on April 12, 1961 aboard the Vostok 1.

• Vostok 6 carried the first woman into space in June 1963.

Yuri Gagarin: the First Human in Space


Soviet Manned Space Program Voskhod

• Vostok was followed by the Voskhod series which launched a three-person capsule in October 1964.

• On March 18, 1965 aboard the Voskhod 2 spacecraft, Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov became the first person to walk in space.


Soviet Manned Space Program Soyuz

• Soyuz means “union” and the spacecraft were designed for docking in space.

• Soyuz consisted of three modules:– An instrument module

with the rocket engines– An orbital module– A descent module

Soyuz Launch


Soviet Manned Space Program Soyuz (cont’d)

• The cosmonauts would begin in the instrument section and after reaching orbit they would move into the orbiter module to conduct experiments. When they started the flight back they would move into the descent module.

• On re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere the three modules would separate with only the descent module re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere.


Soviet Manned Space Program Soyuz (cont’d)

• Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov died when Soyuz 1 crashed while trying to rendezvous with Soyuz 2.

• Soyuz 4 and Soyuz 5 fulfilled the mission of docking and transferring crew members in space.


Case Study: The Space Shuttle

• Experiencing the Space Shuttle• Overview of the Space Shuttle Program• Space Shuttle Systems• External Tank• Solid-rocket Boosters• Astronaut Life• Astronaut Selection and Training• Space Shuttle Crew Positions• Space Shuttle Mission Operations• The Space Shuttle’s Future


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Experiencing the Space Shuttle

• Most recently, the Shuttle has helped deploy and build main parts of the International Space Station. We’ll look at:– How astronauts live and work in space– What it takes to become a Shuttle astronaut– The people on the ground who support the

Shuttle missions


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Overview of the Space Shuttle Program

• NASA developed the Space Shuttle system in the 1970s.• During the early 1970s, NASA and their contractors did

studies to design a reusable space transportation system.

• The Space Shuttle’s mission is to transport its payload (crew and cargo) into low-Earth orbit. Major design requirements were that the orbiter and the two solid-rocket boosters be reusable.



The Orbiter

• The Space Shuttle System has three main elements:– The orbiter that

ferries crew and cargo to and from orbit (Figure 15-12).

– .Space Shuttle Orbiter



The External Tank (ET)

• An external tank (ET) (Figure 15-13) which contains fuel and oxidizer for the SSMEs. The ET drops off to burn up in the atmosphere about 8 minutes after lift-off

Space Shuttle’s External Tank



Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs)

• Two solid-rocket boosters (SRBs) (Figure 15-14) used during the first two minutes of the mission to get the entire system off the ground and moving toward orbit.

Space Shuttle’s Solid Rocket Booster


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Space Shuttle Systems

The Orbiter

The Space Shuttle Orbiter’s Rollover: one of the pre-launch milestones.



Space Shuttle’s Main Engines (SSMEs)

• Space Shuttle’s Main Engines (SSMEs) are reusable, high-performance rocket engines that use liquid propellant to produce variable thrust.

• The SSMEs use liquid hydrogen as fuel with liquid oxygen as the oxidizer (Figure 15-16).

The Space Shuttle’s Main Engines (SSMEs)



Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS)

• Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS), shown in Figure 15-17 provides the necessary velocity change to insert the Shuttle in its orbit, make the orbit circular, and handle orbit transfer, rendezvous, and de-orbit.

The Shuttle’s Two OMS Engines



Reaction Control System (RCS)

• The orbiter’s Reaction Control System (RCS) has a forward and an aft RCS. – The forward RCS is in the forward fuselage’s

nose area. – The aft (right and left rear) RCS is with the

orbital maneuvering system in the OMS/RCS pods.



Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS)

• Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS). The ECLSS consists of systems that do the following:– Refresh air– Cool water– Revitalize and control atmospheric pressure– Actively control temperature– Supply water and handle waste water– Collect waste– Support the airlock



Environmental Control and Life Support System (cont’d)

• The functions of the ECLSS include:– Maintaining relative

humidity between 30 and 75 percent

– Keeping carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide at safe levels

– Controlling temperature and ventilation in the crew compartment

– Cooling electronics on the flight deck, mid-deck, and crew compartment Shuttle Commander, Air Force

Colonel Eileen Collins


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Space Shuttle SystemsElectrical Power System

• Electrical Power System (EPS). The EPS consists of three subsystems: power reactant storage and distribution (PRSD), fuel cell power plants, and electrical power distribution and control.



Communication System

• Telemetry information about its operating conditions and configurations, system, and payloads.

• Commands to the orbiter systems to make them perform some function or configuration change.

• Documentation from the ground that prints out on the orbiter’s teleprinter or text and graphics system.

• Voice communications among the flight crew members and between the flight crew and ground.– Information transfers through radio-frequency (RF) links

directly with the ground or through the tracking and data relay system (TDRS).



Thermal-protection System (TPS)

• Thermal-protection System (TPS). The TPS allows the crew to survive the heat of re-entry.

• The Space Shuttle’s high temperatures were simulated in the test of the thermal insulation materials. Thermal-protection System


Case Study: The Space Shuttle External Tank

Liquid-oxygen Tank

• Liquid-oxygen Tank• The liquid-oxygen tank is an aluminum

pressure vessel that keeps liquid from sloshing and whirlpooling.



Liquid-hydrogen Tank

• Liquid-hydrogen Tank– The liquid-hydrogen tank is a large, aluminum

pressure vessel.– This tank attaches to the orbiter through

struts and ball fittings.



Intertank• The intertank is made from steel and aluminum

with flanges on each end that allow it to join the liquid-oxygen and liquid-hydrogen tanks. – The intertank houses electronics and instruments. It also

houses a plate through which ground workers can supply purge gas, detect hazardous gas, and boil off hydrogen gas as part of ground servicing.


• Two solid-rocket boosters (SRBs) provide the main thrust to lift the Shuttle off the pad and up to an altitude of about 43 kilometers - the first two minutes of flight (Figure 15-21).

• The SRBs are the largest solid-propellant motors ever flown and the first designed for reuse.

Case Study: The Space Shuttle Solid-rocket Boosters

Solid-rocket Boosters (SRBs)


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Astronaut Life

Eating and Drinking• The mid-deck of the

orbiter has equipment for each crew member to stow, prepare, and eat food in two categories: menu or pantry.

• Three daily meals provide an average daily intake of about 2700 calories.

• The water dispenser provides the flight crew with water for drinking and reconstituting food.

Cosmonaut Korzun eating in Space


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Astronaut Life

Sleeping• Sleeping arrangements

consist of a mix of sleeping bags and sleep restraints or rigid sleep stations.

• In addition, each astronaut has a kit that contains eye covers and earplugs.

• The 24-hour period normally divides into eight hours of sleep and 16 hours awake for each crew member. The crew members get 45 minutes to prepare for each sleep period.

Kathryn Sullivan and Sally Ride prepare to sleep.


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Astronaut LifePersonal Hygiene

• Each crew member gets a kit for tooth-brushing, hair care, shaving, nail care and other needs.

• Going to the bathroom in space is much more complicated than on Earth. The Space Shuttle’s toilet (Figure 15-24) uses gravity to pull waste into the vacuum of space. Space Toilet


Case Study: The Space Shuttle Astronaut Selection and Training

• NASA continually accepts applications for the Astronaut Candidate Program.– Civilians may apply at any time. – Military personnel must apply through their parent service.

• Mission-specialist and pilot-astronaut candidates must have at least a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in engineering, biological science, physical science, or mathematics.

• Selected applicants are designated astronaut candidates and assigned to Johnson Space Center for training and evaluation.

manned space explorations

Documents

manned space explorationsunit

manned space flight

space travel

number of manned space

space stationsthe crew

space shuttlecase study

challenger space shuttleit

recent space suits