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  NASA assigns commercial crew astronauts (Page 2)

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Author Topic:   NASA assigns commercial crew astronauts
Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-03-2018 07:56 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by SkyMan1958:
In the future, will there be a commercial owner (e.g. Boeing or SpaceX) crew member aboard all the flights?
Chris Ferguson is the only corporate astronaut and he is only flying on the first test flight. On "operational" NASA missions, all aboard will be space station crew members (with the possible fifth seat spaceflight participant, whose length of time aboard the space station will be contract dependent.

SpaceAngel
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posted 08-04-2018 07:18 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for SpaceAngel   Click Here to Email SpaceAngel     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I thought Ferguson's spaceflight days were over after STS-135 and now he is going back into space?

Blackarrow
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posted 08-04-2018 08:09 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Blackarrow     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Last flight of one spacecraft and first flight of another... not a bad way to end his spaceflight career.

ManInSpace
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posted 08-04-2018 11:41 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for ManInSpace     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Going back to the day Boeing announced his hiring, he was frank about his desire to fly in the spacecraft he would be working on.

Not surprising given his age and experience. His piloting days were ended early upon termination of the shuttle; not by choice.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-06-2018 09:29 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Here is the Space Flight Awareness commercial crew poster, as created by NASA graphic designer Sean Collins and photographer Robert Markowitz:

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-06-2018 02:16 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Robert Pearlman:
No further details were given.
Following up on my own reply, on Friday afternoon (Aug. 3) I asked Mike Hopkins about the lack of mission role assignments:
For every mission, there is a panel that gets together and they look at both the vehicle itself that is getting you to space and then they look at the ISS. So when you're up on ISS, you're going to play various roles, whether you are the flight engineer or the commander.

The same thing is going to happen with our vehicles, whether you'll be a mission specialist, a pilot or a commander. And so those panels still have to meet and decide how they are going to divvy up the different roles.

star61
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posted 08-06-2018 04:19 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for star61   Click Here to Email star61     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I was wondering if the crews are briefing with proprietary information regarding their respective vehicles? If so, does this mean they can not brief astronauts of the "other" team regarding certain aspects of operations?

As engineering test pilots in particular will be getting into the nitty gritty of vehicle systems, they would want to know if the other team did something a better way.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-06-2018 05:04 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The four astronauts who were chosen as the "commercial crew cadre" in 2015 spent time working on both vehicles, and even some of the newly-assigned crew members have already had experience with both (Nicole Mann, for example), so while there is proprietary information, the concern seems to be more with exposing that to the public than between different teams at NASA.

Delta7
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posted 08-08-2018 01:10 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by 328KF:
Will there be new designations for the other crew or will they stick with the ISS standard?
Passenger 1, 2 and 3?

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-08-2018 02:03 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Flight director Ed van Cise, who is a member of the NASA-contracted Boeing Starliner ops team, shared this photo on Twitter, which shows the use of the shuttle-era commander, pilot and mission specialist titles.

SkyMan1958
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posted 08-08-2018 04:20 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for SkyMan1958   Click Here to Email SkyMan1958     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Does anyone know why some of the crew members have red "wings" patches on their left chest, while others have blue patches? Thank you!

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-08-2018 04:31 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Nicole Mann explains:
The blue and gold name tags are Navy, the blue and silver are Air Force or civilian, and the red and gold is Marine Corps.

Jim Behling
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posted 08-08-2018 08:00 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Jim Behling   Click Here to Email Jim Behling     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by star61:
As engineering test pilots in particular will be getting into the nitty gritty of vehicle systems...
The NASA engineers in the Commercial Crew Program are responsible for those type of things versus the just-assigned astronauts. Astronauts are not "engineering test pilots" of the past.

But any proprietary information, they cannot share it with other contractors.

Delta7
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posted 08-08-2018 09:20 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Incidentally, Victor Glover is set to become the first African-American ISS Expedition crew member.

SPACEFACTS
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posted 08-09-2018 12:57 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for SPACEFACTS   Click Here to Email SPACEFACTS     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Will there be more backup crew member or should Lindgren and Wilmore replace each prime crew member if needed?

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-09-2018 06:26 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
According to Johnson Space Center public affairs, Wilmore and Lindgren are the only backups for the astronauts assigned to their respective assigned companies' flight test and first post-certification mission (PCM).

It is still to be seen if Russia or the other international partners assign backups for their crew members (to be announced later) on the PCM flights.

Skylon
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posted 08-09-2018 10:26 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Skylon     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Robert Pearlman:
...shows the use of the shuttle-era commander, pilot and mission specialist titles.
The CDR/PLT and PLT/CDR notes are interesting. Is that meant to distinguish an "up/down" alteration of roles? For example on the CFT does that mean Ferguson will fly the CDR seat on ascent while Boe will fly in the CDR seat for re-entry?

Robert Pearlman
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posted 08-09-2018 11:04 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The positions have yet to be assigned, hence it is not about up/down; rather it is about either/or as of today.

Delta7
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posted 08-09-2018 11:48 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Suni Williams will be the first astronaut to be launched from Earth on three different types of vehicles since John Young in 1981: Shuttle, Soyuz, Atlas V.

The only other astronauts who share that distinction are Schirra, Conrad, and Stafford.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 01-22-2019 06:45 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
collectSPACE
NASA replaces astronaut on Boeing's first Starliner crewed flight test

NASA has swapped out one of its crew members on the first piloted flight of a new commercial spacecraft.

Mike Fincke has replaced Eric Boe as a member of the maiden crew for Boeing's CST-100 Starliner capsule, targeted for launch to the International Space Station later this year.

"Boe is unable to fly due to medical reasons," NASA said in a statement released on Tuesday (Jan. 22). The space agency provided no further details.

Hart Sastrowardoyo
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posted 01-23-2019 10:04 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Hart Sastrowardoyo   Click Here to Email Hart Sastrowardoyo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
The obvious question: Why Fincke, and not Wilmore, who is a Starliner backup?

Robert Pearlman
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posted 01-23-2019 01:03 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
NASA has not said, but one possibility might be that given the time before the flight (at least 8 months, likely more), it may have been more prudent to replace one crew member (Fincke for Boe) instead of two (as a new backup would also have been needed if Wilmore moved up, given the backup is for both the crew flight test and the first operational mission).

Hart Sastrowardoyo
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posted 01-23-2019 07:02 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Hart Sastrowardoyo   Click Here to Email Hart Sastrowardoyo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Couldn't Wilmore fly the CFT and then rotate back into the backup slot for PCM-1, similar (sort of) to the first shuttle flights, where Crippen-Young flew STS-1 and then if needed be, would have flown another OFT?

Robert Pearlman
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posted 01-23-2019 10:44 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
PCM training includes being fully prepared to spend six months (at least) aboard the space station, no different than any other expedition crew member. Boeing's OFT crew may do that, too (stay aboard for six months, still to be determined), but the training flow is different.

Delta7
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posted 01-24-2019 09:30 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Worth mentioning that none of the four astronauts initially assigned to the commercial crew demo flights will be on this mission now.

Delta7
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posted 01-24-2019 01:30 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by Delta7:
Suni Williams will be the first astronaut to be launched from Earth on three different types of vehicles since John Young in 1981: Shuttle, Soyuz, Atlas V.
Looks like that distinction will now belong to Mike Fincke. Two Soyuz launches, one Shuttle launch and now an Atlas V launch.

MSS
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posted 03-06-2019 03:38 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for MSS     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Here is the Space Flight Awareness commercial crew poster (Fincke for Boe):

Robert Pearlman
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posted 03-31-2020 10:09 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
NASA release
NASA Adds Shannon Walker to First Operational Crewed SpaceX Mission

NASA has assigned astronaut Shannon Walker to the first operational crewed flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft on a mission to the International Space Station.

Walker will join NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins and Victor Glover Jr., as well as Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), for a six-month expedition aboard the unique space laboratory.

This mission will be the first in a series of regular, rotational flights to the station following NASA's certification of the new crewed system following completion and validation of SpaceX's test flight with astronauts, known as Demo-2. This test is expected to take place in mid-to-late May as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

Pending the successful Demo-2 test, Walker, Glover, Hopkins, and Noguchi will launch aboard Crew Dragon on SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. That launch is targeted for later this year.

Walker was born in Houston and began her career at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston in 1987 as a robotics flight controller for the space shuttle with Rockwell Space Operations Co. She became a NASA employee in 1995, working on robotics and avionics hardware for the station with the program's international partners. She also coordinated on-orbit problem resolution in the Mission Evaluation Room at Johnson and in Moscow and served as acting manager of the On-Orbit Engineering Office before NASA selected her for the 2004 astronaut class. As an astronaut, she spent 163 days as a flight engineer aboard the space station for Expeditions 24 and 25 in 2010. Walker earned a bachelor's degree in physics and a master's and doctorate in space physics, all from Rice University in Houston.

NASA already assigned Glover and Hopkins to the first operation SpaceX crewed mission in August 2018. This will be the first spaceflight for Glover and the second for Hopkins, who lived aboard the space station from September 2013 to March 2014 as part of Expeditions 37 and 38.

It will be the third spaceflight for Noguchi, who was a space shuttle crew member on the STS-114 mission in 2005 and a space station crew member from December 2009 to June 2010 as part of Expeditions 22 and 23.

NASA's Commercial Crew Program is working with the American aerospace industry as companies develop and operate a new generation of spacecraft and launch systems capable of carrying crews to low-Earth orbit and to the space station. Commercial transportation to and from the station will provide expanded utility, additional research time and broader opportunities for discovery on the orbital outpost.

The station is a critical testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight. As commercial companies focus on providing human transportation services to and from low-Earth orbit, NASA is free to focus on building spacecraft and rockets for deep space missions.

Headshot
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posted 04-13-2020 10:01 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Headshot   Click Here to Email Headshot     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Will NASA maintain separate cadres of astronauts, one qualified for flying to the ISS aboard Crew Dragon and another qualified for flight aboard Starliner and yet another for flying aboard Orion?

Might there be astronauts who could eventually reach the ISS aboard both Starliner and Crew Dragon (but on different missions)?

Also, might an astronaut arrive at the ISS aboard one, but come back to Earth aboard the other?

Does the ISS now have the capability to have both a Starliner and a Crew Dragon docked simultaneously?

Are there any non-emergency scenarios that would require an Orion to dock with the ISS?

Sorry for the barrage of questions, but these have been niggling at the back of my mind for a while.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 04-13-2020 10:07 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
NASA is not maintaining separate cadres for each vehicle. As in the past, when shuttle and Soyuz were flying, astronauts will train for the vehicle for which they are assigned on a mission-to-mission basis.

The space station has two configured ports (international docking adapters) that can support commercial crew vehicles, so it is possible for Starliner and Dragon to be docked at the same time, or two of one vehicle (such as having a Crew Dragon and a cargo-configured Crew Dragon).

There are no plans for crew members to switch vehicles once aboard the space station. Likewise, there are no plans for Orion to dock to the space station.

Headshot
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posted 04-13-2020 11:09 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Headshot   Click Here to Email Headshot     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Thanks Robert. I was wondering if the fact that Starliner and Crew Dragon both have different proprietary display and operating systems would restrict an astronaut trained for one system from being trained for the other system.

Apparently that is not the case although I am certain that both Boeing and SpaceX wish to protect the intellectual property of their designs.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 04-13-2020 01:17 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Both spacecraft have proprietary systems, but the concern is not with those who will fly or otherwise have a valid reason for access to the vehicles, as it is with public access.

For example, both Boeing and SpaceX have allowed the press to "fly" the same simulators used by the astronauts and to view the actual spacecraft, but both companies asked that photos of the same avoid showing certain details or be blurred before publication.)


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