You may know what the inside of a cab looks like - but what's it like inside a space taxi? This cosy scene provides a glimpse of how astronauts may soon be making their way to the International Space Station (ISS). It shows the inside of a prototype Dragon space capsule, made by the company SpaceX of Hawthorne, California, which has just completed two sets of two-day tests in which NASA astronauts and its own staff tried out mock missions.
On 19 May, Dragon is scheduled to launch on an uncrewed mission to dock with the ISS - a first for a commercial craft. But Dragon can in principle operate as a crewed spacecraft too, ferrying NASA astronauts to the ISS.
SpaceX is competing with Boeing and rival companies Blue Origin and Sierra Nevada Corporation for further NASA cash to complete the process of "crew-rating" Dragon. Last week Boeing completed parachute drop tests of its CST-100 crew capsule, which is also a seven-seater.
"We are currently working with NASA to take several steps toward getting Dragon ready to carry crew members," says former NASA shuttle astronaut Garrett Reisman, now a SpaceX executive. "These include perfecting environmental control and life support systems, conceptual displays, spacesuits, seats and making launch pad modifications. And our crew cabin prototype has now been evaluated by NASA astronauts."
Space shuttle veterans Rex Walheim, Tony Antonelli, Eric Boe and Tim Kopra tried entering and exiting the Dragon prototype shown here in both normal and emergency scenarios and performed equipment reach and visibility evaluations - satisfying NASA that the layout of the crew cabin supports critical tasks.
Next SpaceX must demonstrate to NASA the efficacy of a novel launch abort system it has developed to carry the crew to safety in the event of a rocket accident during ascent. A new liquid-fuelled rocket engine for the launch abort system, called the SuperDraco, has already been test-fired "at full throttle and maximum duration" at a rocket test facility in Texas, says Reisman.
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