Commercial Spaceflight Preparation and Extravehicular Activities Training: The Next Generation

Abstract

Commercial orbital spaceflight vehicles are now a reality and are expected to carry passengers in the next year or 2. SpaceX and Boeing should begin their commercial flight services to the International Space Station (ISS) before or during 2020. Furthermore, companies such as Bigelow and Axiom aim to provide low Earth orbit destinations in the years ahead as ISS operations come to a close. The advent of these new vehicles and commercial space stations elicits a need for the development of dedicated commercial spaceflight training services to enable safe and productive spaceflight operations for commercial customers, including commercial extravehicular activity (EVA). Blue Abyss Ltd. is developing dedicated spaceflight training facilities and associated training curricula at several locations around the world including in the United States and the United Kingdom. The Blue Abyss U.K. facility will include the largest pool in the world, larger than the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston. The pool will include a 50-m deep shaft, and platforms at multiple depths for high-pressure training for technical diving and remotely operated vehicle work. A unique feature of the Blue Abyss neutral buoyancy training system will be the ability to combine virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) with neutral buoyancy EVA suit training for a totally immersive and realistic training experience. Full body suspension harnesses will also be utilized in conjunction with VR—AR to provide partial gravity simulation for lunar and Mars surface EVA training and suit testing. Among other services, Blue Abyss with its partners will offer a parabolic flight capability to provide weightless and partial gravity familiarization, orientation, and training. These flights will be used to provide a realistic bespoke training experience that can include pressure suit don—doffing and airlock ingress and egress during weightlessness and the likes of Moon and Mars gravities. Once the development of the initial facilities is underway, Blue Abyss plans to construct additional facilities in the Middle East and Asia to serve regional energy and space sector needs. This article outlines the facilities, training curricula, and future aspirations for the Blue Abyss commercial spaceflight preparation services.