Posts: 864
From: Vancouver, WA, USA
Registered: Feb 2012

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 12-27-2013 11:49 AM               

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Yes and yes.

For example, Michael Fincke and Gennady Padalka donned Orlan spacesuits in 2004 for a series of spacewalks on the Russian segment of the space station, during which the two worked on hardware outside the Zarya FGB and Zvezda service module.

In 2007, Fyodor Yurchikhin and Clay Anderson, wearing U.S. EMU spacesuits, performed maintenance outside the U.S. Unity node and replaced components for the mobile transporter.

Posts: 864
From: Vancouver, WA, USA
Registered: Feb 2012

posted 12-27-2013 12:39 PM               

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Thanks Robert. I knew that some cosmonauts had been trained to use U.S. spacesuits and some astronauts in the use of the Orlan suits, but had forgotten that such EVAs had occurred. I assume these were both planned EVAs.

Do you know if this cross-training continues? After all, it has been six years since the last one.

I guess what I am really asking is, could U.S. astronauts aboard the ISS have used Orlan suits for these last two "emergency" EVAs had NASA not cleared the U.S. spacesuits. This assumes the Russian space agency would have agreed to let astronauts "borrow" their suits.

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 12-27-2013 05:43 PM               

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I believe station astronauts and cosmonauts still undergo basic training in both types of suits, but there's a definite preference by ground controllers to use EMUs for USOS EVAs and Orlans for Russian segment outings.

There's a logistical consideration, among other concerns, with regards to how far the astronauts or cosmonauts need to traverse to reach the work site. (EMUs exit Quest, while Orlans exit Pirs or Poisk.)