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The International Space Station (ISS) Node 1 Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) System is comprised of five subsystems: Atmosphere Control and Supply (ACS), Atmosphere Revitalization (AR), Fire Detection and Suppression (FDS), Temperature and Humidity Control (THC), and Water Recovery and Management (WRM). This paper provides a summary of the Node 1 Emergency Response capability, which includes nominal and off-nominal FDS operation, off-nominal ACS operation, and off-nominal THC operation. These subsystems provide the capability to help aid the crew members during an emergency cabin depressurization, a toxic spill, or a fire. The paper will also provide a discussion of the detailed Node 1 ECLS Element Verification methodologies for operation of the Node 1 Emergency Response hardware utilized during the Node 1 Element Qualification phase.

NASA has long recognized the advantages of providing improved information interfaces to EVA astronauts and has pursued this goal through a number of development programs over the past decade. None of these activities or parallel efforts in industry and academia has so far resulted in the development of an operational system to replace or augment the current extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) Display and Controls Module (DCM) display and cuff checklist. Recent advances in display, communications, and information processing technologies offer exciting new opportunities for EVA information interfaces that can better serve the needs of a variety of NASA missions. Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International (HSSSI) has been collaborating with Simon Fraser University and others on the NASA Haughton Mars Project and with researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Boeing, and Symbol Technologies in investigating these possibilities.

In order to estimate the exposure to a crew in space, there are three essential steps to be performed: first, the ambient radiation environment at the vehicle must be characterized; second, the mass distribution properties of the vehicle, including the crewmembers themselves must be developed, and third a model of the interactions of space radiations with matter must be employed in order to characterize the radiation field at the dose point of interest. The Space Radiation Analysis Group (SRAG) at the NASA, Johnson Space Center carries the primary responsibility for the operational radiation protection support function associated with manned space flight. In order to provide support during the various planning, execution, and analysis/recording phase activities associated with a given mission, tools have been developed to allow rapid, repeatable calculations of exposure on orbit.

Introduction: There are contradictory opinions regarding the contribution of local hand thermal insulation to support local and total comfort during extravehicular activity (EVA). Instead of a local correction by means of thermal insulation on the periphery of the body to prevent heat dissipation, it may be optimal to prevent heat dissipation from the body core. To examine such a concept, the effects of different insulation levels on the left and right hands on the heat flux and temperature mosaic on the hands was measured. These variables were assessed in relation to the level of heat deficit forming in the core organs and tissues. Methods: Six subjects (4 males, 2 females) were donned in a liquid cooling/warming garment (LCWG) that totally covered the body surface except for the face. Participants wore the Phase VI space gloves including the entire micrometeoroid garment (TMG) on the left hand, and the glove without the TMG on the right hand.

The International Space Station (ISS) Environmental Control and Life Support (ECLS) system performance can be impacted by operations on ISS. This is especially important for the Temperature and Humidity Control (THC) and for the Fire Detection and Suppression (FDS) subsystems. It is also more important for Node 1 since it has become a convenient area for many crew tasks and for stowing hardware prior to Shuttle arrival. This paper will discuss the current requirements for ECLS keep out zones in Node 1; the issues with stowage in Node 1 during Increment 7 and how they impacted the keep out zone requirements; and the solution during Increment 7 and 8 for maintaining the keep out zones in Node 1.

A program has been initiated to develop a single set of man/system integration standards, requirements, and guidelines to design hardware and systems with which the space missions crew will interact. This paper describes the background, key issues, and methodology to be used in developing these standards. Included in the methodology is data collection and requirements analysis as well as technical monitoring and review, which includes a government/industry technical advisory group. This paper also briefly describes work performed on the Space Station Human Productivity study.

Life sciences research facilities planned for the U.S. Space Station will accommodate life sciences investigations addressing the influence of microgravity on living organisms. Current projects within the Life Sciences Space Station Program (LSSSP), the Life Sciences Space Biology (LSSB) and Extended Duration Crew Operations (EDCO) projects, will explore the physiological, clinical, and sociological implications of long duration space flight on humans and the influence of microgravity on other biological organisms/systems. Initially, the primary research will emphasize certifying man for routine 180-day stays on the Space Station. Operational crew rotations of 180 days or more will help reduce Space Station operational costs and minimize the number of Space Transportation System (STS) shuttle flights required to support Space Station.

An advanced development helmet mounted display (HMD) was designed and fabricated under NASA-Johnson Space Center (NASA/JSC) contract, NAS 9-17543, by Hamilton Standard Division of United Technologies, Windsor Locks, CT. The work was initiated in December 1985 and culminated in June 1988 with the delivery of an extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) HMD demonstration unit as an alternative to the current low-resolution, chest-mounted display and cuff-mounted checklists. Important design goals achieved with this HMD include the use of transmissive liquid crystal display (LCD) image sources with fairly high resolution (i.e., text, graphics, and video compatible), binocular viewing with total image overlap, virtual image projection, low profile packaging, low power design, and demonstration of voice control of the HMD data.

Water transferred from the Space Shuttle to the International Space Station (ISS) is generated as a by-product from the Shuttle fuel cells, and is generally preferred over the Progress which has to launch water from the ground. However, launch mass and volume are still required for the transfer and storage hardware. Some of these up-mass requirements have been reduced since ISS assembly began due to changes in the storage hardware (CWC). This paper analyzes the launch mass and volume required to transfer water from the Shuttle and analyzes the up-mass savings due to modifications in the CWC. Suggestions for improving the launch mass and volume are also provided.

Micrometeoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) penetration hazards have been a concern for the large number of EVA’s (Extravehicular Activities) expected during the assembly and operation of the International Space Station (ISS). Earlier studies have shown large uncertainties in estimated spacesuit penetration risks. This paper reports the results of recent tests and analyses that have significantly expanded the Shuttle EMU (Extravehicular Mobility Unit) hypervelocity penetration database and clarified our understanding of the associated risks. The results of testing have been used to develop improved estimates of the cumulative risk of penetration during EVA's through the first ten years after the beginning of ISS construction. These analyses have shown that the risks of MMOD penetration during EVA will be somewhat less than the risk of a critical penetration of the ISS itself over the same ten-year period.