|
|
Post by banjomd on Aug 24, 2010 20:48:06 GMT -4
I was discussing James Irwin's cardiac arrhythmia during EVA; one of my staff members asked what Scott would do if Irwin had died or become totally incapacitated on the surface. I couldn't recall reading about that scenario; I surmised that he would have to be left behind. Even if the healthy astro could get the other to the LM, up the ladder and onto the "porch", I doubt that he could be gotten through the hatch and into a safe position for flight (to say nothing about keeping the body for 3 days!).
Has anyone ever read about plans for this scenario?
|
|
|
|
Post by echnaton on Aug 24, 2010 21:44:03 GMT -4
This has the potential for some seriously morbid and distasteful speculation. I'll refrain for now.
|
|
|
|
Post by Tanalia on Aug 24, 2010 22:56:33 GMT -4
I haven't come across anything specific, but I would imagine something along the lines of the contingency television address (with speech suggestion/preparation) considered for Apollo 11. |
|
|
|
Post by banjomd on Aug 25, 2010 6:20:20 GMT -4
Not trying to be morbid but death in space was discussed at least once; pre-launch Gemini 9 Slayton told Stafford what to do if Cernan died during EVA.  |
|
|
|
Post by echnaton on Aug 25, 2010 9:54:41 GMT -4
Not trying to be morbid but death in space was discussed at least once; pre-launch Gemini 9 Slayton told Stafford what to do if Cernan died during EVA. Including the option of cutting him loose to float off into space and reentering without him, according to Cernan. |
|
|
|
Post by banjomd on Aug 25, 2010 10:56:34 GMT -4
Read the accounts given by Stafford, Cernan and (possibly Slayton and Kraft) to see how the different personalities dealt with a potentially distasteful situation!
|
|
|
|
Post by LunarOrbit on Aug 25, 2010 11:03:03 GMT -4
Not trying to be morbid but death in space was discussed at least once; pre-launch Gemini 9 Slayton told Stafford what to do if Cernan died during EVA. Including the option of cutting him loose to float off into space and reentering without him, according to Cernan. ...or re-entering with him still attached to the spacecraft by the umbilical. |
|
|
|
Post by echnaton on Aug 25, 2010 11:09:25 GMT -4
Including the option of cutting him loose to float off into space and reentering without him, according to Cernan. ...or re-entering with him still attached to the spacecraft by the umbilical. The problem with that was the open hatch. The inside of the capsule could get toasty very quickly. |
|
|
|
Post by ka9q on Aug 25, 2010 14:15:37 GMT -4
I also understand that management spoke with more than one CMP about the possibility of having to perform a solo TEI.
In "Carrying the Fire", Michael Collins was very frank about that being his biggest nightmare. He also wrote about learning and practicing a very large set of maneuvers that could be used to rescue the LM as long as it could make some kind of orbit.
Fortunately, none of this ever had to happen. Nor did Jim Lovell realize his fear that his ship might become a "permanent monument to the space program".
|
|
|
|
Post by clipperride on Sept 9, 2010 15:51:21 GMT -4
As far as I'm aware, this possibility had been thought about. It would indeed have been almost impossible to get a badly injured astronaut back up and into the LM, so leaving someone behind was a concern.
Another concern on the Apollo 11 flight was the possibility of cracks in the surface that had been covered by dust. The unmanned landers had shown that Golds theory, that the surface was so soft that it would swallow the lander, was incorrect. However it was still not known if the surface contained dangerous fractures that could have trapped an astronaut.
It does seem that we have changed our attitude to risk since the early days of space flight. Although NASA tried to reduce the risks involved, I doubt if a manned mission would go ahead today if it had the same risk level as the Apollo flights. It's another reason that I get so cross with the hoax believers. These astronauts (and those who have followed them into space) are brave people who should be saluted rather than doubted! **end rant mode**
Regards
Mark B
|
|
|
|
Post by echnaton on Sept 10, 2010 13:58:04 GMT -4
The imperative seems to have shifted from "Get the job done" to "Cut the budget but don't make us look bad." That is not just NASA but a reflection of a wider trend in the country. The post war years were a unique period where the hopes for the future could be brought into the present at an astounding rate. We do not live in that world today.
|
|
