|
|
|
|
Author
|
Topic: Mercury seat sharing?
|
John Charles
Member Posts: 339
From: Houston, Texas, USA
Registered: Jun 2004
|
posted 11-24-2006 11:10 AM
  
Watching the Mercury series from Spacecraft Films, I wondered about astronaut accommodations in the Mercury capsule. Namely, were there any discomforts in backup pilots fitting comfortably in contour couches made specifically for the prime pilots, during long spacecraft tests in altitude chambers and on the pad?I don't have the individual values handy, but the Mercury astronauts' heights ranged between 170 and 180 cm (5'7" and 5'11"), and weights between 70 and 87 kg (155 and 192 lb.). Specifically, I was curious if Glenn ever had "issues" fitting into Grissom's contour couch, during preparations for MR-4? ------------------
John Charles
Houston, Texas |
KC Stoever
Member Posts: 1012
From: Denver, CO USA
Registered: Oct 2002
|
posted 11-24-2006 12:32 PM
That's a great question. I have one contemporaneous report (cited in FSS, p. 225) on just this problem for the MA-6 prime-alternate team of Glenn and Carpenter. Whether it happened in quite this way for the two suborbital flights and the Shepard-Glenn and Grissom-Glenn, I cannot say.Carpenter had this to say in a private journal entry, about a day's work on the MPT (the Mercury Procedures Trainer): "Spent eight hours in the suit and four hours in the capsule for my run--but John's couch doesn't fit me at all, and it was uncomfortable. Wrong angle and all, but I gave a good account of myself and came up with some good ideas." That same day Carpenter reports that: "John had a long run--ten hours in the suit and nine in the capsule." To judge from this account of one day in early 1962, it appears the MPT was fitted with the custom contour couch of only the prime pilot. To change out the couch must have cut into valuable MPT time. I imagine the discomfort this caused for the alternates was expected and accepted as part of the job. [Edited by KC Stoever (November 24, 2006).] |
Duke Of URL
Member Posts: 1316
From: Syracuse, NY
Registered: Jan 2005
|
posted 11-24-2006 12:49 PM
Wouldn't this have also been uncomfortable in Gemini as well? I imagine Tom Stafford had a fair amount of difficulty wedging into Elliot See's couch. |
Steven Kaplan
Member Posts: 140
From: New Jersey
Registered: Jul 2001
|
posted 11-26-2006 07:51 AM
I don’t believe that there were form fitted liners used in Gemini. A quick review of the Gemini Familiarization Manual (SEDR 300), section 3.3 described the seats as “an all metal built up assembly with a framed seat bucket”. I know there were issues with the varying heights of astronauts, particularly Gen. Stafford, resulting in alterations to the hatch interior to increase head room, but I have never seen reference to individual couch liners as used in Mercury. I certainly would be interested in other opinions on the questions. |
randy
Member Posts: 2176
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999
|
posted 11-26-2006 08:54 AM
Steve is right. Starting with Gemini, there were no form fitting seats.Randy |
space1
Member Posts: 853
From: Danville, Ohio
Registered: Dec 2002
|
posted 11-26-2006 09:49 AM
It's not commonly known, but there were three Gemini seat components that were form fitting: the backboard, the pelvic block, and the seat bucket. I think the contours were not so enveloping as with the Mercury couch, so there wouldn't have been quite so much discomfort sitting in the wrong seat.If you are able to look carefully at a Gemini spacecraft, you might see the evidence of personalized seat components. Here is a photo I took years ago of the left seat in Gemini XII:
 If you look at the name encircled by the other seat's elbow restraint, you'll notice that Aldrin's backboard is on the left seat. (In fact, I later discovered that the entire seat had been switched with Lovell's seat.) My web site has some helpful Gemini illustrations, including the seat: http://space1.com/Spacecraft_Data/Handbook_Illustrations/Gemini/gemini.html ------------------
John Fongheiser
President
Historic Space Systems, http://www.space1.com |
SpaceCat
Member Posts: 151
From: Florida, US
Registered: May 2006
|
posted 12-04-2006 04:51 PM
Great input, and very cool website, John!This whole discussion brings to mind a funny little anecdote--- Ten or so years ago I was working with Scott Carpenter on kind of an 'underwater space camp' in Key Largo. We had a little one-man "Urchin" submarine used in the program and one day I had to change out some wiring in its aft section. A small child might have been able to go in the entry hatch and turn to reach this workspace, but I sure could not- and had to pull off the acrylic hemisphere nose and wiggle in on my back using my knees to 'walk' along the overhead with tools and parts on my chest. Just then Scott walked by and I said, "Doesn't this position look familiar?" He laughed and replied, "That's just about how much room we had!" |
John Charles
Member Posts: 339
From: Houston, Texas, USA
Registered: Jun 2004
|
posted 12-11-2006 06:15 PM
quote:
Originally posted by John Charles:
Watching the Mercury series from Spacecraft Films, ...I was curious if Glenn ever had "issues" fitting into Grissom's contour couch, during preparations for MR-4?
I am up to Schirra's Sigma 7 flight, and in his comments (recorded in about 1998) he debunked the story that the "Gusmobile" was too small for Stafford to fit into--according to Schirra, Grissom had an average torso length, but shorter legs, which is why (according to Schirra) Stafford could fit into Gemini. (Note: with this posting, I milked two postings to cSpace out of one Schirra quote!)
------------------
John Charles
Houston, Texas | |
Contact Us | The Source for Space History & Artifacts
Copyright 2020 collectSPACE.com All rights reserved.
Ultimate Bulletin Board 5.47a
|
|
|
 advertisement
|
