Abstract
The mechanisms of spacecraft control and communication and the processes of spacecraft engineering are outlined in this chapter. We then consider the advantages of putting humans in space , before considering what is involved in getting them there and keeping them alive.
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Notes
- 1.
We are fond of the car-on-an-icy-road analogy, not because of some suppressed trauma but because it is a form of near-frictionless movement that most people have either experienced or can easily imagine. If you want to learn more about spacecraft Guidance, Navigation and Control, one detailed textbook is de Ruiter (2013) but there are many, many others. For a general overview use the NASA and Wikipedia sites referenced in Chap. 5.
- 2.
Some prefer to use trueness rather than accuracy and then define accuracy as the combination of trueness and precision. Given the ubiquity of accuracy in other contexts in English this seems sensible, although trueness is a clumsy word. Exactitude might have been a better choice.
- 3.
Or were induced to miss, by enemy deception. For examples of deception used against German bombing of London in WW2, see Denny (2007).
- 4.
And partially, one suspects, because a centralized control that precludes local initiative was just the Soviet way of doing things.
- 5.
You will recall that the US was “obviously” unable to match the quality and reliability of automated Soviet systems…according to the Soviets.
- 6.
We can’t be entirely sure what they are, but an elementary study of biology suggests that a major life goal is getting the chance to reproduce and pass on its genes. In order to do that a cockroach has to find a mate, but everything hinges on whether or not it can survive long enough to get that opportunity. To survive it has to avoid threats, both from other creatures and from the environment, and it has to find food and water to keep its systems working.
- 7.
For autonomous spacecraft this NASA presentation offers an accessible overview: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/nac_tie_aug2018_tfong_tagged.pdf
- 8.
Although geared specifically towards contact with distant probes, Taylor (2014) is a useful place to start if you want to know more about spacecraft communications.
- 9.
If you go to https://eyes.nasa.gov/dsn/dsn.html you can see what each antenna of the DSN is currently doing.
- 10.
Other project breakdowns are available. But Concept, Design, Implementation is the easiest to explain without expending a whole book on the subject. If you want a whole book on the subject then one that is highly relevant is the NASA Systems Engineering Handbook (NASA SP-2016-6105, 2007).
- 11.
This is a surprisingly common occurrence for scientific missions to Solar System objects.
- 12.
The grand-daddy of reference works on humans in space is NASA’s Bioastronautics Data Book (NASA SP-3006, 1973) but a more contemporary work is Norberg (2013). Useful links are: https://www.nasa.gov/hrp/5-hazards-of-human-spaceflight, and https://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Astronauts/Living_in_space
- 13.
Ethically dubious experiments from the early years have shown that chimpanzees can make a full recovery after three minutes exposure.
- 14.
With some slight modifications, a submarine could work as a pressure vessel in space, but it would be a bit of overkill and, given its weight, much harder to get up there. In contrast, most contemporary spacecraft would make very bad submarines.
- 15.
NASA Astronaut Kjell Lindgren is credited with “smells great”. The second quote is from NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, who has clearly led a more interesting life. (See https://www.space.com/40329-space-station-insides-smell-great-video.html and https://www.wired.com/story/astronaut-scott-kelly-explains-how-the-iss-is-like-harris-county-jail/)
- 16.
The best overview of all space suits is at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_suit
- 17.
Also, bacteria seem more resistant to antibiotics when weightless. The ISS is, apparently, awash with microbial and fungal life.
- 18.
A good general overview of astronaut training can be found at ESA’s astronaut training center: https://www.esa.int/About_Us/EAC/Training
Reference Works
Denny, M. (2007). Blip, Ping and Buzz: Making Sense of Radar and Sonar. (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press).
de Ruiter, A.H., Damaren, C. and Forbes, R.J. Spacecraft Dynamics and Control: An Introduction (New York: John Wiley and Sons, 2013).
Norberg, C. Human Spaceflight and Exploration (Chichester, UK: Springer-Praxis, 2013).
Taylor, J. (ed.) Deep Space Communications (Pasadena, CA: JPL, 2014).
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Denny, M., McFadzean, A. (2019). A Degree of Control. In: Rocket Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-28080-2_6
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