steve@nuchat.UUCP (Steve Nuchia) (03/14/90)
In the March 9 _Space_News_Roundup_, JSC employee newsletter: 'Space Shuttle' now officially program's title Title changed from "National Space Transportation System" to "Space Shuttle". Mission deginations "STS" will not be changed. Space Station Track Team First space walk in years has come long way in short time, now planned for November Article about test of CETA, the Crew and Equipment Translation Aid, planned for STS-37, an Atlantis flight. This is planned to be the first EVA since STS-61B, in November of 85. The astronauts will be Jerry Ross and Jay Apt. Ross was "the last American to shut the door on space" -- he walked twice on 61B. No word on whether he turned out the lights. The CETA is being proposed as an alternative to the "golf cart" originally planned as the transit system on the 400-foot [sic] long truss. CETA is compared to a motorcycle. "Althought the simplest method of movement would be a hand-over-hand pull down [sic] the truss, with no special equipment except a tether, such a method could cause excessive wear and tear on the truss and suit. Also, it would be difficult to carry cargo." "CETA may be the answer. It is a small cart that runs along a track that can be built into the [truss]. Astronauts would ride prone on CETA, and could pull equipment along behind them. But how to propel the cart, how much stress the various methods of movement would put on the truss and the astronauts, and how fast it can be comfortably and safely moved are questions to be studied on STS-37." "The cart will be mounted on a track in the payload bay [...] distance of 46 feet. Apt and Ross will move the cart in three different fashions. In one, one crewman will lie prone and pull himself along the track hand over hand. In another, the astronaut will be angled upward slightly and a lever will be installed on the cart. The crewman will pump the lever -- much like and old railroad handcar -- to move it up and down the track. In the third method, the angled crewman will turn hand-pushed pedals similar to bicycle pedals that generate electricity to drive the cart." "The first two versions of CETA are called the manual and mechanical cart designs. [...] All include brakes and provisions for moving in reverse. [...]" "CETA will take up most of the single, six-hour space walk [...]" Photos of CETA models in lab and swimming pool. JSC's Mendell technical advisor for TV pilot Mendel is a "planetary scientist". Disney partnership is filming "Plymouth", "an upcoming television series pilot about the first town on the Moon." Mendell reports being impressed with the sets. "The movie [...] revolves around a small logging town that moves to the Moon after being rendered uninhabitable by a toxic accident." -- Steve Nuchia South Coast Computing Services (713) 964-2462 "You have no scars on your face, and you cannot handle pressure." - Billy Joel