Bureaucracy in Space

NASA last month issued a set of loose conceptual rules for private companies that might take over from its own space shuttles in moving astronauts to the international space station. (At only 39 pages, it's very loose indeed for government regulatory work). Some of the points of the certification requirements:

The LOC probability distribution for the ascent phase of a 210 day ISS mission shall have a
mean value no greater than 1 in 1000
b.  The LOC probability distribution for the entry phase of a 210 day ISS mission shall have a
mean value no greater than 1 in 1000

"LOC" is the polite bureaucratese for "loss of crew," that is, killing the astronauts.

The CCTS [Commercial Crew Transportation System] shall provide the capability to isolate and/or recover from faults identified during system development that would result in a catastrophic event….

The CCTS shall provide the capability for autonomous operation of system  and subsystem functions, which, if lost, would result in a catastrophic  event.
Rationale: This capability means that the crewed system does not depend on communication with Earth  (e.g., mission control) to perform functions that are required to keep the crew alive.

The CCTS shall provide the capability for the crew to readily access equipment involved in the response to emergency situations and the capability to gain access to equipment needed for follow-up/recovery operations.
Rationale: Fire extinguishers are one example of the type of equipment needed for immediate response to a fire emergency.  "Ready access" means that the crew is able to access the equipment in the time required without the use of tools.  The ready access time will depend on the phase of flight and the time to effect of the hazard.  Ready access also accounts for suited crewmembers if the equipment could be needed during a mission phase or operation where the crew is suited.  A contamination clean-up kit is an example of equipment needed for follow up/recovery operations.

It's all refreshingly everyday, like the most convincing science fiction. The era of the space taxi is dawning. Katherine Mangu-Ward wrote last month on NASA's efforts to make room for private space flight companies.