While America’s space program has endured several tragedies, no mission has left the remains of a lost astronaut floating in the final frontier.
The agency organized protocols if an astronaut were to die on the International Space Station, a 450-ton web of metal tubes swirling around the planet in the inhospitable vacuum of space.
NASA’s current ISS death procedures revolve around a modified military-grade body called the Human Remains Containment Unit (HRCU).
NASA’s death protocol isn’t solely out of respect for the deceased astronaut and the mental well-being of the surviving crew, but for society at large.
When tragedy strikes the space program, it impacts the general public.
Despite the numerous tragedies that have befallen America’s space program, no mission has left the remains of a lost astronaut floating in the final frontier. It makes sense that NASA is ready for the worst-case situation. In the event that an astronaut perished on board the 450-ton network of metal tubes that circled the earth in the hostile vacuum of space, the agency set up procedures.
The Human Remains Containment Unit (HRCU), a modified military-grade body, is the focal point of NASA’s current ISS death procedures. The grim piece of equipment was delivered to the station in 2012, according to Scientific American. The HRCU would be incorporated into the ISS’s refrigeration system if it were utilized and kept in a non-pressurized space, much like morgues on Earth use refrigeration to slow the decomposition of human remains. Additionally, there are screw-on charcoal filter canisters and an absorbent lining. The intention was to provide a 72-hour window for NASA Flight Directors to make a decision.
NASA trains its crews to collect In-Mission Forensic Samples without the use of a medical examiner. The remaining astronauts would take pictures of the body and then, during the worst telemedicine call ever, gather samples of tissue, hair, blood, and other bodily fluids from NASA’s flight surgeons.
The next step would be a small ceremony to give the crew time to mourn. After that, NASA would probably bring the remains of an astronaut back to Earth. The HRCU has straps on both corners that can be looped through the seat restraints of a spacecraft. It is possible for the agency to assign astronauts to place the remains in the seat of their deceased colleague. A conventional burial-at-sea would not be the ideal choice for a death on the ISS because the corpse might be encountered by the station in a future orbit. But it wouldn’t be impossible for Spock’s funeral to be recreated in “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” during a subsequent deep-space expedition. “.
NASA’s death protocol applies to society as a whole, not just to the departed astronaut and the surviving crew members’ mental health. The public is affected when a tragedy occurs in the space program. The lunar program almost came to an end before Apollo 1 took off when the entire crew perished during a rehearsal.
The White House’s own preparations were prompted by the response to Apollo 1. In 1969, President Richard Nixon’s speechwriter, Bill Safire, had a prepared speech ready in case Apollo 11 was destroyed. “Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace,” opened the never-delivered public speech honoring Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. “,”.
Even though Armstrong and Aldrin landed on the moon and made a safe return, since Apollo 11, NASA has been plagued by disaster. All hands were lost during the launch and reentry of the Space Shuttles Columbia and Challenger, respectively. Every catastrophe was considered to be a national tragedy. A death in orbit might be interpreted as a workplace accident given the growth of commercial spaceflight and space programs in other nations.
