Advanced Crew Escape Suit

An astronaut wearing the ACES suit
Rear view of the suit

The Advanced Crew Escape Suit (ACES) or "pumpkin suit",[1] was a full pressure suit that began to be worn by Space Shuttle crews after STS-65, for the ascent and entry portions of flight. The suit is a direct descendant of the U.S. Air Force high-altitude pressure suits worn by the two-man crews of the SR-71 Blackbird, pilots of the U-2 and X-15, and Gemini pilot-astronauts, and the Launch Entry Suits (LES) worn by NASA astronauts starting on the STS-26 flight, the first flight after the Challenger disaster. The suit is manufactured by the David Clark Company of Worcester, Massachusetts. Cosmetically the suit is very similar to the LES. ACES was first used in 1994.

History

In 1990, the LES was nearing the end of its service life, so a program to produce a successor was initiated.[2] Favorable crew evaluations of a prototype led to full scale development and qualification which would run until 1992.[2] Production of the completed design began in February 1993, and the first suit was delivered to NASA in May 1994.[2]

After 1998, it became the only suit used during launch and re-entry on the Space Shuttle. The ACES incorporates gloves on disconnecting lock rings on the wrists, liquid cooling and improved ventilation, and an extra layer of insulation. The ACES suit is analogous to the Sokol suits used for Soyuz missions and its functions are virtually the same — the primary differences being the ACES suit having a detachable helmet and survival backpack, while the Russian suit has an integrated helmet and no backpack (due to the limitations in space aboard the Soyuz, and that the spacecraft is an entry capsule, not a winged spacecraft or lifting body).

Design

Each suit is sized individually, although most suits can be worn by astronauts of different heights. No ACES has failed during normal flight operations. The Columbia investigation found that the crews' ACESs all failed at some point, but also that none of the Columbia crew had sealed their helmets, and also that several were not wearing suit gloves. By comparison, in 1966 an SR-71 pilot in a similar suit, whose helmet and gloves were sealed, survived similar pressure conditions when his aircraft broke up while flying at approximately Mach 3. However, the "thermal and chemical environment of the Columbia accident (the temperature and oxygen concentration) was "much more severe" than in the SR-71 accident, and the report recommended that future crew survival suits be evaluated for thermal and chemical resistance as well as (as USAF suits had been evaluated previously) pressure and windblast.[5]

Specifications

Name: Advanced Crew Escape Suit (S1035)[3]

Derived from: USAF Model S1034[3]

Manufacturer: David Clark Company[3]

Missions: STS-64[6] to STS-135

Function: Intra-vehicular activity (IVA)[3]

Pressure Type: Full[3][2]

Operating Pressure: 3.5 psi (24.1 kPa)[3]

Suit Weight: 28 lb (12.7 kg)[3]

Parachute and Survival Systems Weight: 64 lb (29 kg)[3]

Total Weight: 92 lb (41.7 kg)[3]

Useful Altitude: 30 km (100,000 ft)[7]

Primary Life Support: Vehicle Provided[3]

Backup Life Support: 10 minutes[3]

Future use

Initially, ACES was intended to be retired after the Space Shuttle Program and be replaced by the Constellation Space Suit.[8] The Orion missions are now instead planned to use a modified ACES (MACES). This suit would have increased mobility in comparison to its Space Shuttle counterpart and would use a closed-loop system to preserve resources.[9] NASA is also considering using it for contingency and possibly limited capacity EVAs, such as those carried out during the Gemini program.[10] Simulated microgravity testing has occurred on parabolic flights and in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, in order to better characterise the suit's mobility.[10][11]

Images

References

  1. ↑ "Astronaut Candidates 2004 - Training Journals". NASA.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Daniel M.Barry; John W. Bassick (July 1995). "25th International Conference on Environmental Systems: NASA Space Shuttle Advanced Crew Escape Suit Development". San Diego, California: David Clark Company/SAE International. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Kenneth S. Thomas; Harold J. McMann (2006). US Spacesuits. Chichester, UK: Praxis Publishing Ltd. p. 374. ISBN 0-387-27919-9.
  4. ↑ NASA-TV, Coverage of STS-123 launch preparations, March 11, 2008, and NASA Virtual Launch Countdown retrieved March 11, 2008.
  5. ↑ Columbia Crew Survival Investigation Report, pp.3-44–3-46 retrieved September 30, 2013.
  6. ↑ National Space Society - Space Shuttle Flight 64
  7. ↑ ACES Guide - Pg. 15
  8. ↑ "Space Shuttle Program Transition and Retirement: Personal Property Disposition Plan" (PDF). NASA. 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2013. The ACES pressure suit will no longer be used once Station assembly is completed and the Space Shuttle is retired. For Constellation, NASA has decided to replace the EMU and the ACES pressure suit with the new Constellation Space Suit system.
  9. ↑ "ISS Update: Zero Gravity Suit Tests (Part 1)". NASA. 2 August 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  10. 1 2 "Space Station Live: Orion Spacesuits with Dustin Gohmert". NASA. 20 June 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  11. ↑ "ISS Update: Zero Gravity Suit Tests (Part 2)". NASA. 8 August 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
General

Kenneth S. Thomas; Harold J. McMann (2006). US Spacesuits. Chichester, UK: Praxis Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-387-27919-9. 

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