Redefining safety in commercial space: Understanding debates over the safety of private human spaceflight initiatives in the United States

In 2009 President Obama proposed a budget for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) that canceled the Constellation program and included the development of commercial crew transportation systems into low Earth orbit. This significant move to shift human spaceflight into the private sector sparked political debate, but much of the discourse has focused on impacts to “safety.” Although no one disputes the importance of keeping astronauts safe, strategies for defining safety reveal contrasting visions for the space program and opposing values regarding the privatization of U.S. space exploration. In other words, the debate over commercial control has largely become encoded in arguments over safety. Specifically, proponents of using commercial options for transporting astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) argue that commercial vehicles would be safe for astronauts, while proponents of NASA control argue that commercial vehicles would be unsafe, or at least not as safe as NASA vehicles. The cost of the spaceflight program, the technical requirements for designing a vehicle, the track record of the launch vehicle, and the experience of the launch provider are all incorporated into what defines safety in human spaceflight. This paper analyzes these contested criteria through conceptual lenses provided by fields of science and technology policy (STP) and science, technology, and society (STS). We ultimately contend that these differences in definition result not merely from ambiguous understandings of safety, but from intentional and strategic choices guided by normative positions on the commercialization of human spaceflight. The debate over safety is better considered a proxy debate for the partisan preferences embedded within the dispute over public or private spaceflight.     

肼推进剂废气处理系统设计

为吸收某型号发动机地面试验尾气中所含的肼和氨气,设计了肼推进剂废气处理系统,处理后的气体达到可排入大气的标准。文章介绍了肼分解废气处理的7种常用方法,经比较选择使用处理液喷淋的方法。废气处理系统实际达到的技术参数为:对空自运行流量944 Nm~3/h;发动机试车状态下经过处理的废气中肼含量0.001 2 mg/m~3,氨含量为0.032 6~0.057 mg/m~3(厂界值,共检测4点)。检测结果大大优于国家相关标准要求。经过数十次发动机地面试验的实践证明,系统能够满足用户使用要求,并且操作简便、运行可靠、免于维护。     

燃气轮机排气余热回收方式与热交换器的应用

介绍和分析了燃气轮机余热回收方式和典型余热回收热交换器的结构特点,认为研制高效、低成本、紧凑型热交换器,是推动燃气轮机、尤其是小型燃气轮机发展与应用的重要技术途径.     

磁絮凝在餐饮废水中的应用研究

以COD去除率作性能参数,考察了几种复合磁絮凝剂在高、低二种浓度餐饮废水中的絮凝效果。研究结果表明:与普通絮凝剂相比,采用复合磁絮凝剂处理餐饮废水不仅能大大缩短分离时间、减少污泥体积,还能提高絮凝效果。     

Effects of input method and display mode of situation map on early warning aircraft reconnaissance task performance with different information complexities

Early Warning Aircraft(EWA) are the main force for air detection and its Human-Machine Interface(HMI) should be designed to support task efficiency and safety. With the application of advanced input method and interface design in EWA, little is known about their actual usability in terms of human factors and ergonomics. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the input method and display mode of the situation map on EWA reconnaissance task performance with different information c...