Presentation Type
Paper
Abstract
From the days of “The Rocket Men” to the uprising of SpaceX, spaceflight has always inspired awe in humanity. If you examine the men that were apart of those first missions, you will find that they were not only the most capable, but won the genetic lottery to become this nations first astronauts. Looking to the times of Mercury, you see the extreme constraints that potential astronaut candidates had to meet in order to go to space. Aside from the rigorous medical testing, potential candidates also had to meet strict height and weight requirements. Early candidates could not be taller than 5 feet 11 inches and would also not be allowed to weigh more than 180 pounds. Fast forward to the “Shuttle Era” some of these constraints were alleviated, but these changes still did not increase the pool of potential candidates by that much. The most recent requirements listed a height requirement of 5 foot 2 inches to 6 foot 3 inches for Commander and Pilot positions, and requirements being even more lenient for mission specialists. With the rise of the commercial space industry, companies need to be prepared to accommodate a larger range of participants. Whether for research or leisure, space travel will need to be able to accommodate that larger pool of possible participants. To achieve the vision of having equal space travel, we must form the spacecraft to the user, and not vice versa.
Ergonomics in Space Flight – Past, Present, & Future
From the days of “The Rocket Men” to the uprising of SpaceX, spaceflight has always inspired awe in humanity. If you examine the men that were apart of those first missions, you will find that they were not only the most capable, but won the genetic lottery to become this nations first astronauts. Looking to the times of Mercury, you see the extreme constraints that potential astronaut candidates had to meet in order to go to space. Aside from the rigorous medical testing, potential candidates also had to meet strict height and weight requirements. Early candidates could not be taller than 5 feet 11 inches and would also not be allowed to weigh more than 180 pounds. Fast forward to the “Shuttle Era” some of these constraints were alleviated, but these changes still did not increase the pool of potential candidates by that much. The most recent requirements listed a height requirement of 5 foot 2 inches to 6 foot 3 inches for Commander and Pilot positions, and requirements being even more lenient for mission specialists. With the rise of the commercial space industry, companies need to be prepared to accommodate a larger range of participants. Whether for research or leisure, space travel will need to be able to accommodate that larger pool of possible participants. To achieve the vision of having equal space travel, we must form the spacecraft to the user, and not vice versa.