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Engineers help displant "landmines" in manned spacecraft
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-10-14 16:35
Other than technical support, spacecraft engineers might risk their next
generation to try out space vessels for astronauts.
Radiation is the biggest threat inside a capsule, according to Shen Chaoyang,
an engineer for China's Shenzhou-6 spaceship. "I've got married and have a
child. My colleague is going to have a baby. So I do more inside work in the
capsule."
First users of the space vehicle, engineers are supposed to find faults and
give advice on improvements. Although they double-wear radiation-proof suits,
but still feel uncomfortable after long hours of work inside the capsule.
One special talent engineers must have is imagination, to anticipate any
possible errors and inconveniences that may emerge in space. "We just regard our
job as that of 'landmine removers'", said Shen a team leader.
Shen, 27, is 1.7 meters tall, the average height of Chinese taikonauts. He
became a craft engineer with his expertise on power supply and cable networking.
Shen and his peer Hou Xiangyang, 29, and other colleagues are the first to
board the capsule, to check the layout of apparatus and buttons and the design
of hand-operated devices to see if they would pose any threat to the safety of
taikonauts.
We do whatever taikonauts will do in space, Shen said. They simulate
taikonauts' activities in space, like giving orders to systems aboard, mimicking
their daily life and experiments.
"I was pretty nervous, and was afraid of damaging cables on the floor in
every single step," Shen recalled his first-time experience when he entered the
craft, "It's a bit depressing to look at clusters of sprawling pipes, cables and
meters."
Engineers test the capsule, which in turn pose challenges to themselves. One
challenge is to stay hand-tied in the cabin during a break that could last half
an hour before they are allowed to input a second programming command.
"I touched unintentionally an apparatus, and was harshly criticized later on.
The director warned that you could not touch anything without permission," Hou,
a machinery expert, said.
Engineers work inside the capsule "plainclothes", not wearing heat and
noise-free spacesuits but in ordinary jumpers. They could stay inside for
maximum five hours without a break out. "We are unable to get out in the middle
of work, and so we don't eat or drink before work," Hou said.
When working with taikonauts in the cabin, engineers need to explain and
illustrate, either standing or kneeling on the floor because the seats inside
are only available for taikonauts who are in their space suits. "We almost
collapsed every time we got out," Hou recalled.
Hours before the Shenzhou-6 vessel blast off, engineers gave it a thorough
last check in the capsule, and signed a confirmation to endorse the boarding of
taikonauts.
The Shenzhou-6 craft is on China's first multi-manned, multi-day space
mission. It was launched Wednesday morning and will return a few days later.
According to Shen, the 600 units of equipment in the spacecraft are connected
with cables 30 kilometers in total length and have 50,000
contacts.
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