Questions tagged [safety]
Questions regarding space exploration safety issues and procedures.
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Why would Starship flight 3's Indian Ocean re-entry zone "maximize public safety" versus the Pacific Ocean re-entry zone?
Per SpaceX, Starship test 3's landing zone for the orbiter is now in the Indian Ocean (rather than off of Hawaii):
[Starship] will also fly a new trajectory, with Starship targeted to splashdown in ...
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Will the next deorbiting reactor be on a "safe disposal" trajectory, or re-enter as an uncontrolled derelict?
Kosmos 954 was a reconnaissance satellite launched by the Soviet Union
in 1977, powered by a nuclear reactor containing 50Kg of highly
enriched uranium-235
Soviet officials … lost control over the ...
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How actually dangerous was RTLS for the Space Shuttle?
I know that the Space Shuttle's Return To Launch Site abort mode was always considered to be particularly risky, and as a result was never tested. In particular, it seems like it requires everything ...
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What is the name of NASA's program to prevent back-contamination by crews returning to Earth?
I remember reading a Wikipedia article that in the initial years of space exploration NASA had a standing crew of bulldozers to bury any landing site or research facility exploring material from ...
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Does earth orbiting debris that threatens the space station have a particular direction bias?
I'm starting to investigate the danger of orbital debris on the ISS (international space station). One could assume that due to the orbital velocity vector, that any debris that the ISS encounter, ...
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Is there a rocket that is publicly in the process of being certified to carry nuclear payloads to space?
As it currently stands in the US, only 1 rocket has the proper certification to carry a nuclear payload to space, and that is Atlas 5. (At least, this was my last knowledge). Atlas is nearing end of ...
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Wouldn't it make sense to use parachutes for aborting test flights rather than destroying the whole rocket?
Recently, a SpaceX test flight was aborted by blasting the whole device.
Wouldn't it make sense to have parts of such rocket be equipped with parachutes when test flights are performed, so at least ...
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What do they call “all the provisions provided during the launch campaign or atmospheric re-entry of a spacecraft“ in the context of astronautics?
I am reading an entry in a French dictionary and translating it into English. This entry is “sauvegarde.” In a general context, this term is translated as “safeguard,” “protection,” or even “...
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How can SLS be ready to carry humans after just a single test flight?
Artemis I is the maiden flight of the SLS, and the very next SLS mission, Artemis II, is planned to already carry a human crew.
I don't understand how this is possible. How can a hyper-complex rocket, ...
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Electronic Circuits for Safe Initiation of Pyrotechnics?
Pyrotechnic charges are initiated using e.g. the NASA Standard Detonator
or the NASA Standard Initiator. I don't know the exact specs, but I assume that these will be driven with a few amps in the kV ...
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Why is it assumed that space flights have to be safe?
On the one hand, space travel is a completely novel technology and less than 1000 people have traveled outside the planet. On the other hand, every accident in space involving humans is treated as a ...
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What safety protocols did this Pythom Space rocket crew ignore?
The video below of Pythom Space's first rocket test has raised a few eyebrows
The video prompted hundreds of replies on Twitter, including some from rather horrified rocket scientists. "We knew ...
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Will the NASA Commercial Crew "zip line away from the tower and into" this "military armoured truck" in case of emergency? Does the truck have a name?
The NASA Commercial Crew @Commercial_Crewtweet
The #Crew4 astronauts have been busy getting ready for their upcoming mission to the
@Space_Station!
The crew recently participated in simulations ...
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Why is ~280 km one month before reentry the lowest altitude that the final ISS crew may see? Isn't that cutting it kinda close?
Writing this answer to When will the ISS deorbit? I came across Space Policy Online's NASA Solidifies Planning to Deorbit ISS in 2031 and the image below.
It shows the estimated last crew occupying ...
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How much force is required to expedite reentry of space debris?
I'm trying to understand how much a small reduction in orbital velocity can affect the orbital decay rate of space debris. I understand that there are multiple factors to consider, such as debris in ...
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