Fun Facts-in Aerospace History

Can’t take off your socks?

Astronaut wearing socks in space capsule

In all the space reports you certainly don’t see barefoot astronauts — human feet adapt to long-term walking conditions, and the skin at the bottom of the feet is hard, producing a lot of keratin and dead skin. In the microgravity environment of space, people’s feet do not have any pressure, and the dead skin and matter will automatically fall off and float in the air in large quantities.

So all astronauts must make sure to wear socks all the time, about 10 days to change. One is because the air environment is too clean, and the other is that the feet do not move and do not sweat.

NASA pilot’s socks are made from 85% lager wool and suede soles to keep warm and comfortable even in the vacuum of space. This can be said to be a classic design, which has been used for decades.

Come back and quarantine?

After the Apollo 11 return capsule returned to Earth, it was noted that the recyclers were wearing green isolation anti-chemical suits

Meeting with family

Meeting with President Nixon

Isolation cabin

After returning to the earth from space, astronauts should be sealed and closed for strict inspection, mainly to observe and discover the physical condition of astronauts in time.

Don’t suffocate yourself when you sleep!

Astronaut sleeping in space capsule

The air circulation in large spacecraft is not very good, and you must turn on the fan when sleeping, otherwise there is no gravity and no air flow, and the carbon dioxide air mass around you will suffocate you for a long time.

Astronaut sleeping in sleeping bag

At the same time, because of the weightless state, astronauts have slight activity when sleeping in space, and even breathing will make astronauts float. Therefore, when the astronaut sleeps, he will burrow into a special sleeping bag connected to the structure of the capsule. Fixing the sleeping bag in a certain area can exert certain pressure on the astronauts, make their bodies close to the cabin, and create a sleep state closer to the ground, which is not only conducive to the sleep of astronauts, but also ensures the safety of astronauts.

Word battle

astronaut & cosmonaut

American astronauts are called astronauts, and Soviet/Russian cosmonaut are called cosmonaut, both of which are derived from the Greek word, naunt means sailor, crew/seafarer. ASTRO means star, so American astronauts presumably meant to be star-travel crews. The Soviets used cosmo, which means universe in Greek, so was the crew of cosmic travel, and did win the United States in name.

The screw is worth $290 million

Pictures of the satellite falling to the ground

Look at the point, no matter how much you mess things up, at least you don’t have to tell the boss——”Sorry, I just slammed that $290 million NOAA-N satellite to the ground.”

On September 6, 2003, the near-finished NOAA-N-Prime advanced weather satellite worth $290 million accidentally fell while working. The 14-foot-tall spacecraft slid vertically off the stationary equipment at an altitude of 3 feet above the ground as it prepared to transition it from a vertical position to a horizontal position.

At that time, a technician loosened the screw on the bottom of the satellite, but forgot to record it. A group of technicians who came up then turned the bracket carrying the satellite on one side, unaware that the screws at the bottom had been loosened, and ignored the steps that needed to see if all the screws were fixed before the satellite moved. The result was a NOAA-N-Prime weather satellite that fell on the icy concrete floor.

Doctor, do you see if I can still grow taller? Go to space!

you look taller

In the case of microgravity, the skeleton is unfolded, and there is no gravity to compress the bone elongation, especially the lumbar spine, which will lead to a certain increase in height. Returning to the ground will recover a lot, but it will also be slightly higher than the original.

Returning from space is also entry, and customs also has to apply

This is the customs declaration form for Apollo 11 after returning from the moon

Even if you are an astronaut, you have to go through this procedure.

Warm father

Eugene Selnan

Before leaving the moon, Eugene Selnan did something that made fathers all over the world crazy jealous. He wrote the abbreviation of his daughter Tracy’s name on the surface of the moon.

A small step for the frog A big step for the purpose of all taillessness

It was not known whether the frog had been harmed, and if it had been sacrificed it would not have been meaningless: the frog was closer to the moon than all his companions

In October 2016, NASA’s Minotaur V rocket lifted off from a launch pad in Virginia and embarked on a journey to the moon with the LADEE probe. The scenes are spectacular, exciting, and epic. But there were also sacrifices, according to a long-range camera showing a frog blown into the sky by the air current of a human explosion.

Viewership records

The Apollo 11 moon landing was the world record for the largest number of simultaneous viewers in the world. Later, this record was broken by China’s Spring Festival Gala.