Female astronauts Jan Davis and Mae Jemison undergo training at Marshall's Spacelab-J Crew Training facility.
A mockup of the Spacelab II configuration was built at Marshall's Completed Payload Crew Training Complex (PCTC) located at Building 4612.
S93-31706 (3 April 1993) --- With the aid of technicians and training staffers astronaut David A. Wolf prepares to participate in training for contingency Extravehicular Activity (EVA) for the STS-58 mission. Sharing a moveable platform with Wolf was astronaut Shannon W. Lucid (out of frame). For simulation purposes, the two mission specialists were about to be submerged to a point of neutral buoyancy in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Though the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission does not include a planned EVA, all crews designate members to learn proper procedures to perform outside the spacecraft in the event of failure of remote means to accomplish those tasks.
S93-31701 (3 April 1993) --- Displaying the flexibility of his training version of the Shuttle Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) space suit, astronaut David A. Wolf participates in training for contingency Extravehicular Activity (EVA) for the STS-58 mission. Behind Wolf, sharing the platform with him was astronaut Shannon W. Lucid. For simulation purposes, the two mission specialists were about to be submerged to a point of neutral buoyancy in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Though the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission does not include a planned EVA, all crews designate members to learn proper procedures to perform outside the spacecraft in the event of failure of remote means to accomplish those tasks.
61A-S-135 (5 Nov 1985) --- Two school teachers in training at the Johnson Space Center got their first ?real time? exposure to a Space Shuttle mission as they monitor activity aboard the Spacelab D-1 science module from the mission control center. Sharon Christa McAuliffe (frame center) and Barbara R. Morgan are briefed by Terry White at the Public Affairs console during a television downlink from the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger. McAuliffe is scheduled to fly as teacher/citizen observer on the STS 51-L mission early next year; and Morgan is in training as her backup.
S85-26582 (Feb 1985) --- Training on the rebreathing assembly, astronaut James P. Bagian, STS-40 mission specialist, inhales a predetermined gas composition. A gas analyzer mass spectrometer determines the composition of the gases he exhales. The rebreathing assembly and gas analyzer system are part of an investigation that explores how lung function is altered. Dr. Bagian will be joined by two other mission specialists, the mission commander, the pilot and two payload specialists for the scheduled 10-day Spacelab Life Sciences-1 (SLS-1) mission. The flight is totally dedicated to biological and medical experimentation.
This photograph shows activities inside the science module during the Spacelab-1 (STS-9) mission. Left to right are Mission Specialist Robert Parker, Payload Specialist Byron Lichtenberg, Mission Specialist Owen Garriott, and Payload Specialist Ulf Merbold. The overall goal of the Spacelab-1 mission, the first mission of the Spacelab facility, were: (1) To verify the Spacelab system capability, (2) to obtain valuable scientific, applications, and technology data from a U.S./European multidisciplinary payload, and (3) to demonstrate the broad capability of Spacelab for scientific research. More than 70 experiments in 5 disciplines from 14 nations were conducted during the mission. The mission marked the the entry of non-astronaut persornel, called Payload Specialists, into space as working members of the crew. They are fellow scientists representing the international group of investigators using the mission. Mission Specialists are NASA astronauts who have broad scientific training. They operate various Orbiter-Spacelab systems, perform any required activity outside the spacecraft, and support investigations as needed. The Space Shuttle Orbiter Columbia that carried Spacelab-1 was operated by two other NASA astronauts serving as commander and pilot. The STS-9 mission, managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center, was launched on November 28, 1983.
S93-43856 (7 Ssept 1993) --- Navigating a one person life raft, Jay C. Buckey, M.D., participates in emergency bailout training in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Dr. Buckey has been assigned as an alternate payload specialist for the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission scheduled for next month. Nearby is a SCUBA-equipped diver who assisted in the training exercises.
S98-05015 (14 April 1998) --- President Bill Clinton is pictured inside the Spacelab mock up during a tour conducted by U.S. Sen. John H. Glenn (D.-Ohio), currently in training as a space shuttle crewmember at the Johnson Space Center (JSC).
STS071-758-009 (27 June - 7 July 1995) --- Astronaut Bonnie J. Dunbar, mission specialist, floats about in the Spacelab Science Module as astronaut Norman E. Thagard looks on. Thagard, Mir-18 guest cosmonaut researcher, had completed four months in space aboard Russia's Mir Space Station. When this photograph was taken he was undergoing a battery of tests and data collection exercises on Spacelab, onboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis. Dunbar had served as his Mir-18 backup, during a year's training in Russia.
S93-45369 (29 Sept 1993) --- Training on the pre-breathing assembly, Martin J. (Marty) Fettman, DVM, inhales a predetermined gas composition. A gas analyzer mass spectrometer determines the composition of the gases he exhales. The re-breathing assembly and gas analyzer system are part of an investigation that explores how lung function is altered in space flight. The payload specialist for the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission was participating with six NASA astronauts, also assigned to STS-58, for data collection and training.
S93-45366 (29 Sept 1993) --- Astronaut John E. Blaha, STS-58 mission commander, sits in a training version of the rotating chair test device. Sensors are attached to Blaha's head and face to record responses to the rotation. Blaha was participating with five other NASA astronauts and a payload specialist for data collection and training in preparation for the two week Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission.
S90-46492 (16 Aug 1990) --- Astronaut Tamara E. Jernigan, STS-40 mission specialist, is pictured in a training version of the extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) spacesuit. Dr. Jernigan was about to be submerged in the Johnson Space Center's 25-ft. deep weightless environment training facility (WET-F) pool to simulate a contingency extravehicular activity (EVA). There is no EVA scheduled for STS-40, the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission.
S90-41366 (11 June 1990) --- Astronaut Bryan D. O'Connor, STS-40 mission commander, talks with Elizabeth Youmans of the crew training staff at JSC, during a break in mission training. This exercise, in JSC's Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory, was designed to familiarize the astronauts with proper procedures and gear involved in emergency egress from the Space Shuttle. O'Connor is wearing the orange partial pressure ascent/entry suit. Primary payload of the STS-40 mission is Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1).
S80-38456 (13 Aug 1980) --- Claude Nicollier of Switzerland, one of two European scientists/Spacelab payload specialist candidates training in the United States along with 19 new NASA astronaut candidates, grabs onto the one-man life raft he is using during a water survival training school attended by several JSC personnel in mid-August. Six of the 19 candidates who had not had this type training before and the two Europeans were joined by a veteran astronaut, training personnel and two NASA physicians on the trip.
S90-45785 (16 Aug 1990) --- Astronaut Tamara E. Jernigan, STS-40 mission specialist, is pictured in a training version of the extravehicular mobility unit (EMU) spacesuit talking with a fellow crewmember and members of the crew training staff. At left is astronaut Sidney M. Gutierrez, pilot for the flight. Dr. Jernigan was about to be submerged in the Johnson Space Center's 25-ft. deep weightless environment training facility (WET-F) pool to simulate a contingency extravehicular activity (EVA). There is no EVA scheduled for STS-40, the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission.
STS-35 Mission Specialist (MS) Robert A.R. Parker (left) and Payload Specialist Samuel T. Durrance practice Astronomy Laboratory 1 (ASTRO-1) experiment procedures in a space shuttle aft flight deck mockup in the Payload Crew Training Complex at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama. For all Spacelab missions, shuttle crew members train regularly in the facility in preparation to operate experiments on their Spacelab missions. The ASTRO-1 crew will operate the ultraviolet telescopes and instrument pointing system (IPS) from Columbia's, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 102's, aft flight deck. The seven-member ASTRO-1 crew will work around the clock, in 12-hour shifts, to allow the maximum number of observations to be made during their nine or ten days in orbit. In addition to the commander and pilot, the crew consistss of three MSs and two payload specialists. (MSs are career astronauts who are trained in a specialized field. Payload specialists are members of the science investigator teams who were nominated by their peers to operate their experiments on orbit. They are trained and certified for flight by NASA.) View provided by MSFC with alternate number 9005803.
S93-31702 (3 April 1993) --- Astronaut David A. Wolf participates in training for contingency extravehicular activity (EVA) for the STS-58 mission. Behind Wolf, sharing the platform with him is astronaut Shannon W. Lucid. For simulation purposes, the two mission specialists were about to be submerged to a point of neutral buoyancy in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Though the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission does not include a planned EVA, all crews designate members to learn proper procedures to perform outside the spacecraft in the event of failure of remote means to accomplish those tasks.
S93-31697 (3 April 1993) --- Astronaut Shannon W. Lucid participates in training for contingency Extravehicular Activity (EVA) for the STS-58 mission. Behind Lucid, sharing a moveable platform with her, is astronaut David A. Wolf (out of frame). For simulation purposes, the two mission specialists were about to be submerged to a point of neutral buoyancy in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Though the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission does not include a planned EVA, all crews designate members to learn proper procedures to perform outside the spacecraft in the event of failure of remote means to accomplish those tasks.
S93-43840 (6 Sept 1993) --- Astronaut William S. McArthur, mission specialist, participates in training for contingency Extravehicular Activity (EVA) for the STS-58 mission. For simulation purposes, McArthur was about to be submerged to a point of neutral buoyancy in the Johnson Space Center's (JSC) Weightless Environment Training Facility (WET-F). Though the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission does not include a planned EVA, all crews designate members to learn proper procedures to perform outside the spacecraft in the event of failure of remote means to accomplish those tasks.
S90-46497 (18 Aug 1990) --- Astronaut Rhea Seddon, STS-40 mission specialist, takes a break from firefighting training at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). In less than a year Dr. Seddon will be joined by four NASA astronauts and two payload specialists for the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission aboard Columbia.
STS-38 crewmembers don launch and entry suit (LES) equipment prior to emergency egress training in JSC's Mockup and Integration Laboratory (MAIL) Bldg 9A. Pilot Frank L. Culbertson, wearing navy blue LES, fastens parachute strap and Mission Specialist (MS) Robert C. Springer, wearing orange LES, dons parachute pack with a technician's assistance in front of a Spacelab module mockup.
S84-43852 (November 1984) --- These seven men have been training for NASA’s Spacelab 3/STS-51B mission scheduled for launch in late April 1985. On the front row are astronauts Robert F. Overmyer (left), commander; and Frederick D. Gregory, pilot. On the back row, left to right, are Don L. Lind, mission specialist; Taylor G. Wang, payload specialist; Norman E. Thagard and William E. Thornton, both mission specialists; and Lodewijk van den Berg, payload specialist.
S93-45370 (29 Sept 1993) --- Blood samples from crew members are critical to several Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) investigations. Amalour Veloso (left) and Sandra Prow draw blood from David A. Wolf, mission specialist. Wolf was participating with five other NASA astronauts and a payload specialist on data collection and training in preparation for the two week SLS-2 mission.
STS-47 Endeavour, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 105, Spacelab Japan (SLJ) Commander Robert L. Gibson, wearing launch and entry suit (LES), holds sky genie equipment in proper position while listening to a training instructor's directions. Gibson along with the other STS-47 crewmembers is participating in post landing emergency egress procedures at JSC's Mockup and Integration Laboratory (MAIL) Bldg 9NE.
S93-45371 (29 Sept 1993) --- Astride the bicycle ergometer, Martin J. (Marty) Fettman, DVM, breathes quietly into the cardiovascular re-breathing unit during the resting phase of an experiment. The payload specialist for the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission was participating with six NASA astronauts, also assigned to STS-58, for data collection and training.
S90-41360 (11 June 1990) --- Two crewmembers assigned to NASA's Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1)/STS-40 mission are pictured during emergency egress training in the Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Seen are astronauts Sidney M. Gutierrez (left) pilot, and Bryan D. O'Connor, mission commander. Out of frame are astronauts Rhea Seddon, James P. Bagian, Tamara E. Jernigan, all mission specialists; and payload specialists Millie Hughes-Fulford and F. Drew Gaffney.
S92-48735 (18 Sept 1992) --- These four Germans have been assigned as payload specialists to support the STS-55\Spacelab D-2 mission. Left to right are Renate Brummer, Gerhard Thiele, Ulrich Walter and Hans Schlegel. Walter and Schlegel are scheduled to fly aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia for the mission, while Brummer and Thiele will serve as alternates and fill supportive roles on the ground. They are seen during a break in training in the Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory at the Johnson Space Center.
S87-28666 (March 1987) --- Millie Hughes-Fulford, STS-40/SLS-1 payload specialist, stands near the Echocardiograph on Rack 6 of the SLS-1 module, during a rehearsal of experimentation scheduled for her spaceflight.
STS-40 Payload Specialist Millie Hughes-Fulford conducts Spacelab Life Sciences 1 (SLS-1) Experiment No. 198, Pulmonary Function During Weightlessness, in JSC's Life Sciences Project Division (LSPD) SLS mockup located in the Bioengineering and Test Support Facility Bldg 36. Hughes-Fulford sets switches on Rack 8. Behind her in the center aisle are the stowed bicycle ergometer (foreground) and the body restraint system.
STS058-S-002 (May 1993) --- Wearing training versions of their launch and entry garments, the seven crew members assigned to the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) mission are pictured in the traditional pre-flight crew portrait. Left to right (front) are David A. Wolf, and Shannon W. Lucid, both mission specialists; Rhea Seddon, payload commander; and Richard A. Searfoss, pilot. Left to right (rear) are John E. Blaha, mission commander; William S. McArthur Jr., mission specialist; and payload specialist Martin J. Fettman, DVM.
STS047-S-002 (June 1992) --- These seven crew members are currently in training for the STS-47/Spacelab J mission scheduled for later this year. Pictured are (left to right, front) Jerome (Jay) Apt, mission specialist; Curtis L. Brown, pilot; and (left to right, rear) N. Jan Davis, mission specialist; Mark C. Lee, payload commander; Robert L. Gibson, mission commander; Mae C. Jemison, mission specialist; and Mamoru Mohri, payload specialist, representing the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA). This is the Space Shuttle Endeavour's second scheduled mission.
S90-41372 (11 June 1990) --- Crewmembers assigned to NASA's STS 40 Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission take a brief break during emergency egress training in the Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Left to right are astronauts James P. Bagian, Tamara E. Jernigan, both mission specialists; and Sidney M. Gutierrez, pilot; and Bryan D. O'Connor, mission commander. Out of frame are astronaut Rhea Seddon, mission specialist, and payload specialists Millie Hughes-Fulford and Drew Gaffney.
S90-41359 (11 June 1990) --- Astronaut James P. Bagian, STS-40 mission specialist, is seen in his partial pressure ascent/entry suit during a training exercise in the Johnson Space Center's Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory. Dr. Bagian will be joined on the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission, scheduled for launch in less than a year, by astronauts Bryan D. O'Connor, Sidney M. Gutierrez, Rhea Seddon and Tamara E. Jernigan, along with payload specialists F. Drew Gaffney and Millie Hughes-Fulford.
S85-29307 (May 1985) --- The seven crew members for the Space Shuttle STS-51F/Spacelab 2 mission take a pause from a KSC training session to pose for a pre-flight crew portrait. Astronauts C. Gordon Fullerton (kneeling center), mission commander; and Roy D. Bridges (kneeling right), pilot; are flanked by the payload specialists and mission specialists for the mission. Standing (left to right) are astronauts Anthony W. England, Karl J. Henize and Story Musgrave - all mission specialists; and payload specialist Loren Acton and John-David Bartoe.
STS058-S-122 (18 Oct 1993) --- This distant shot of Columbia on its way to Earth-orbit was captured on film from the Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) assigned to advance launch range screening. Onboard the spacecraft were six NASA astronauts, a veterinarian from the private sector and the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) science module. The crew will spend two weeks in Earth-orbiting devoting all its on-duty time to life sciences research. Launch occurred at 10:53 a.m. (EDT), October 18, 1993, from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC).
STS047-31-009 (12-20 Sept 1992) --- Two NASA astronauts prepare to try their hand at a new method of eating an in-space meal as chopsticks are called upon by a third crew member. Pictured left to right, are Curtis L. Brown, Jr., pilot; payload specialist Mamoru Mohri representing Japan's National Space Development Agency (NASDA); and Robert L. Gibson, mission commander. Several months of training, as well as the eight-days of sharing research on the Spacelab-J mission, allowed the astronauts and payload specialist to learn a great deal about the two cultures.
S85-41246 (26 Sept 1985) --- The STS 61-A/Spacelab D-1 crewmembers are seen in this training scene in the Johnson Space Center's Space Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory. Descending from a simulated Shuttle orbiter in distress, using a Sky-Genie device, is Astronaut Henry W. Hartsfield, Jr. mission commander. Watching in blue flight garments are other members of the crew. They are, left to right, Ernst Messerschmid, German payload specialist (PS1); James F. Buchli, NASA mission specialist (MS2); Bonnie J. Dunbar, NASA mission specialist (MS1); Wubbo J. Ockels, Dutch PS3. Not pictured is Steven R. Nagel, pilot. Photo was taken by Otis Imboden.
S90-41365 (11 June 1990) --- Crewmembers assigned to NASA's STS-40/Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission take a brief break during emergency egress training in the Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). In the foreground are astronauts Rhea Seddon and payload specialist F. Drew Gaffney. In the background, also wearing an orange partial pressure, ascent/entry suit is astronaut Tamara E. Jernigan, mission specialist. Not in the frame are astronauts Bryan D. O'Connor, mission commander; Sidney M. Gutierrez, pilot; James P. Bagian, mission specialist, and payload specialist Millie Fulford-Hughes.
S93-45068 (22 Sept 1993) --- Two members of the STS-58 Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-2) crew, train with amateur radio equipment at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). They are William S. McArthur (left), mission specialist, and Richard A. Searfoss, pilot. The STS-58 flight will carry the Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) payload, configuration C, which includes FM voice and packet. Three of the seven crewmembers are licensed amateur radio operators. Searfoss' call letters are KC5CKM; McArthur, KC5ACR; and payload specialist Martin J. Fettman, KC5AXA. Licensed students at a number of schools around the country will have the opportunity to talk directly with the astronauts during the 14-day flight.
In this photograph, astronaut Eugene Trinh, a payload specialist for this mission, is working at the Drop Physics Module (DPM), and mission specialist Carl Meade is working on the experiment at the Glovebox inside the first United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) Science Module. The USML-1 was one of NASA's missions dedicated to scientific investigations in a microgravity environment inside the Spacelab module. Investigations aboard the USML-1 included: materials science, fluid dynamics, biotechnology (crystal growth), and combustion science. The DPM is dedicated to the detailed study of the dynamics of fluid drops in microgravity. The Glovebox offers experimenters new capabilities and technologies in microgravity with a clean working space and minimizes contamination risks to both Spacelab and experiment samples. Payload specialists are professional scientists or engineers whose only assignment on a space flight is to carry out scientific and technological experiments. Their specific training for a space flight is usually limited to a short period of learning how to live and work in weightlessness. Mission Specialists are both professional scientists and career astronauts. Thus they are a link or bridge between the other crew members, and combine the functions of resident maintenance engineers, in-space counterparts of flight engineers in aircraft, and fully qualified scientists. The USML-1 flew aboard the STS-50 mission on June 1992, and was managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center.
STS-40 Payload Specialist Millie Hughes-Fulford along with backup payload specialist Robert Ward Phillips familiarize themselves with Spacelab Life Sciences 1 (SLS-1) equipment. The two scientists are in JSC's Life Sciences Project Division (LSPD) SLS mockup located in the Bioengineering and Test Support Facility Bldg 36. Hughes-Fulford, in the center aisle, pulls equipment from an overhead stowage locker while Phillips, in the foreground, experiments with the baroreflex neck pressure chamber at Rack 11. The baroreflex collar will be used in conjuction with Experiment No. 022, Influence of Weightlessness Upon Human Autonomic Cardiovascular Control. Behind Phillips in the center aisle are body mass measurement device (BMMD) (foreground) and the stowed bicycle ergometer.
S85-26553 (Feb 1985) --- STS-40/SLS-1 payload specialist Millie Hughes-Fulford sits strapped in the special device scientists have developed for determining mass on orbit. As the chair swings back and forth, a timer records how much the crewmember's mass retards the chair's movement. Dr. Hughes-Fulford will be joined by three mission specialists, the mission commander, the pilot and a second payload specialist for the scheduled 10-day Spacelab Life Sciences-1 (SLS-1) mission. The flight is totally dedicated to biological and medical experimentation.
Five astronauts and two payload specialists take a break in training for the Neurolab mission to pause for a crew portrait. The Spacelab mission was conducted aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia on STS-90 which launched on April 17, 1998. Astronauts Richard A. Searfoss, commander (right front); and Scott D. Altman, pilot (left front). Other crew members (back row, left to right) are James A. (Jim) Pawelczyk, Ph.D., payload specialist; and astronauts Richard M. Linnehan, Kathryn P. Hire, and Dafydd R. (Dave) Williams, all mission specialists; along with payload specialist Jay C. Buckey, Jr., MD. Linnehan and Williams, alumnus of the 1995 class of astronaut candidates (ASCAN), represents the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
S92-49373 (8 Dec 1992) --- The seven prime flight crewmembers and two alternates assigned to support the STS-55\Spacelab D-2 mission pose with their science module. Left to right (front) are Steven R. Nagel, Terence T. (Tom) Henricks, Charles J. Precourt, Bernard A. Harris Jr., Ulrich Walter, Gerhard Thiele and Hans Schlegel; and (back) Renate Brummer and Jerry L. Ross. Nagel is mission commander; Henricks, pilot; and Ross, payload commander. Harris and Precourt will serve as mission specialists. Walter and Schlegel are scheduled to represent the DLR as payload specialists for the mission, while Brummer and Thiele will serve as alternates and fill supportive roles on the ground. The crew was photographed during a tour of the science module before its integration at Kennedy Space Center (KSC).
S85-26571 (Feb 1985) --- Wearing a special collar, Millie Hughes-Fulford, payload specialist, practices medical test operations scheduled for the Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1) mission. Robert Ward Phillips, backup payload specialist, looks on. The collar, called the baroflex neck pressure chamber, is designed to stimulate the bioceptors in the carotid artery, one of the two main arteries that supply blood to the head.
Once the United States' space program had progressed from Earth's orbit into outerspace, the prospect of building and maintaining a permanent presence in space was realized. To accomplish this feat, NASA launched a temporary workstation, Skylab, to discover the effects of low gravity and weightlessness on the human body, and also to develop tools and equipment that would be needed in the future to build and maintain a more permanent space station. The structures, techniques, and work schedules had to be carefully designed to fit this unique construction site. The components had to be lightweight for transport into orbit, yet durable. The station also had to be made with removable parts for easy servicing and repairs by astronauts. All of the tools necessary for service and repairs had to be designed for easy manipulation by a suited astronaut. Construction methods had to be efficient due to the limited time the astronauts could remain outside their controlled environment. In lieu of all the specific needs for this project, an environment on Earth had to be developed that could simulate a low gravity atmosphere. A Neutral Buoyancy Simulator (NBS) was constructed by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in 1968. Since then, NASA scientists have used this facility to understand how humans work best in low gravity and also provide information about the different kinds of structures that can be built. With the help of the NBS, building a space station became more of a reality. Pictured is Astronaut Paul Weitz training on a mock-up of Spacelab's airlock-hatch cover. Training was also done on the use of foot restraints which had recently been developed to help astronauts maintain their positions during space walks rather than having their feet float out from underneath them while they tried to perform maintenance and repair operations. Every aspect of every space mission was researched and demonstrated in the NBS. Using the airlock hatch cover and foot restraints were just a small example of the preparation that went into each mission.
Once the United States' space program had progressed from Earth's orbit into outerspace, the prospect of building and maintaining a permanent presence in space was realized. To accomplish this feat, NASA launched a temporary workstation, Skylab, to discover the effects of low gravity and weightlessness on the human body, and also to develop tools and equipment that would be needed in the future to build and maintain a more permanent space station. The structures, techniques, and work schedules had to be carefully designed to fit this unique construction site. The components had to be lightweight for transport into orbit, yet durable. The station also had to be made with removable parts for easy servicing and repairs by astronauts. All of the tools necessary for service and repairs had to be designed for easy manipulation by a suited astronaut. Construction methods had to be efficient due to the limited time the astronauts could remain outside their controlled environment. In lieu of all the specific needs for this project, an environment on Earth had to be developed that could simulate a low gravity atmosphere. A Neutral Buoyancy Simulator (NBS) was constructed by NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in 1968. Since then, NASA scientists have used this facility to understand how humans work best in low gravity and also provide information about the different kinds of structures that can be built. With the help of the NBS, building a space station became more of a reality. Pictured is Astronaut Paul Weitz training on a mock-up of Spacelab's airlock-hatch cover. Training was also done on the use of foot restraints which had recently been developed to help astronauts maintain their positions during space walks rather than having their feet float out from underneath them while they tried to perform maintenance and repair operations. Every aspect of every space mission was researched and demonstrated in the NBS. Using the airlock hatch cover and foot restraints were just a small example of the preparation that went into each mission.