Space Systems Laboratory
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The Space Systems Laboratory (SSL) is part of the Aerospace Engineering Department and James A. Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. A leader in the area of astronautics, the Space Systems Laboratory is centered around the Neutral Buoyancy Research Facility, a 50-foot diameter, 25-foot deep water tank that is used to simulate the microgravity environment of space. The only such facility housed at a university, Maryland's neutral buoyancy tank is used for undergraduate and graduate research at the Space Systems Lab. Research in Space Systems emphasizes space robotics, human factors, applications of artificial intelligence and the underlying fundamentals of space simulation. There are currently five robots being tested, including Ranger, a four-armed satellite repair robot, and SCAMP, a 6 degree of freedom free-flying underwater camera platform. Launched by NASA in 1996, Ranger and its predecessor robot were both constructed in the Space Systems Lab.
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[edit] History
The Space Systems Lab was founded at MIT in 1976, by faculty members Renee Miller and J.W. Mar. Its early studies in space construction techniques led to the EASE (Experimental Assembly of Structures in EVA) flight experiment which flew on Space Shuttle mission STS-61-B in 1985.
In 1990, lab director Dr. Dave Akin moved the lab to the University of Maryland. The Neutral Buoyancy Research Facility, or NBRF, was completed in 1992. Current projects include the Maryland Advanced Research/Simulation (MARS) suit, a simplified neutral buoyancy spacesuit for use in EVA research; Power Glove, a prototype motorized spacesuit glove which will help reduce astronaut hand fatigue; and TSUNAMI, an apparatus to test human neuromuscular adaptation in different gravitational fields and different simulations of weightlessness.[1]
[edit] Partners
The SSL is a member of NASA's Small Satellite Technology Initiative (SSTI), New Millennium Program, and International Space Station Technology Testbed Program.
The Laboratory also has ties with the M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory, NASA Langley, JPL and the Air Force Phillips Laboratory as well as the Departments of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering at M.I.T. and aerospace companies such as Draper, TRW, Lockheed-Martin, MDA and Hughes.
