Humans are going into space in record numbers, with commercial space-flight companies planning to ferry supplies to the International Space Station, a potential spacewalk by private astronauts, all while NASA sets the stage for more moonwalks with a series of unmanned flight tests. Dayton-area businessman Larry Connor took part in Houston-based Axiom’s Mission 1, rocketing to the ISS for ten days to conduct a variety of experiments.
Popular Mechanics is keeping a living list of all space launches – manned and unmanned – planned for 2022, a list worth checking regularly, given the mercurial nature of pinning down a launch date.*
NASA’s Artemis mission is scheduled to return a human to the moon in 2024-2026, and the United States Space Force (USSF) will be deploying Guardians into space, though no plans are on the books yet.** USSF, a relatively new Service (established Dec. 2019), is at work fulfilling its mission goals and ensuring the five stated core competencies live up to the name. No. 3 on the list is “Space Mobility & Logistics”*** – moving personnel throughout space – which demands a solid rescue plan: The U.S. Government cannot mitigate the risk of isolation in space without placing personnel recovery capability near the operation.
A graduate students at the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) partnered with Wright Brothers Institute to investigate the issue and report on findings via a Delphi-method Sprint.
This iterative collaboration requires inputs from experts to forecast viable solutions to problems where data is missing or incomplete. The results of the Sprint will codify the consensus among experts to provide recommendations for key stakeholders.
WBI’s experience and expertise in executing successful Sprints was instrumental in identifying and including experts in the discussion, and was involved in identification of procedural gaps in addition to providing potential solutions.