Riding Rockets - Mike Mullane [230]
max-q—An engineering term for the point in flight when an aircraft or spacecraft experiences the maximum aerodynamic pressure. Max-q (where the M is capitalized) is also the name of the astronaut band. Though there have been several generations of astronaut band members, the band name remains the same.
MCC—Mission Control Center. The Johnson Space Center team that directs a shuttle mission from “tower clear” (the moment the shuttle rises above the launchpad) until the “wheel stop” call at landing, at which time control is returned to Kennedy Space Center.
MDF—Manipulator Development Facility. A full-scale simulation of the Canadian robot arm and shuttle cargo bay in a building at Johnson Space Center.
MEC—Master Events Controller. A black box on the space shuttle that controls critical events like the commands to jettison the booster rockets and the empty gas tank.
MECO—Main Engine Cutoff. The moment in a shuttle launch when the three liquid-fueled engines shut down.
MLP—Mobile Launch Platform. The “launchpad” on which the space shuttle is stacked and that is carried to either Pad 39A or B by a massive tracked crawler.
MMU—Manned Maneuvering Unit. A space jet pack. An MMU has high-pressure gas thruster jets that allow an untethered astronaut to fly short distances from the space shuttle.
MS—Mission Specialist. Astronauts trained for mission payload activities, e.g., using the robot arm, doing a spacewalk, conducting experiments, etc.
MSE—Military Space Engineer. Department of Defense personnel flown on some DOD missions.
MSFC—Marshall Spaceflight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
NASA—National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
O2—Gaseous oxygen breathed by astronauts.
OFT—Orbital Flight Test. The first four space shuttle flights. After these were successfully concluded, the STS was proclaimedoperational .
OMS—Orbital Maneuvering System. Two six-thousand-pound-thrust liquid-fueled engines at the tail of the orbiter. These are used for the final boost into orbit, the brake from orbit, and for large orbit changes.
PAM—Propulsion Assist Module. A solid-fueled rocket motor attached to the bottom of a communication satellite to lift it to a 22,300-mile-high equatorial orbit.
PAO—Public Affairs Officer. An MCC position filled by NASA’s representative to the public.
PEAP—Personal Emergency Air Pack. A portable container of breathing air, which astronauts would use in a ground escape through toxic fumes.
PLBD—Payload Bay Doors. The clamshell doors that cover the space shuttle payload bay.
PLT—Pilot. The pilot astronaut who sits in the right front seat during a shuttle launch and landing. Like the mission commander, the PLT is trained to fly the shuttle.
PPK—Personal Preference Kit. The twenty items of personal significance that NASA permits astronauts to fly in space.
PR—Public Relations. Refers to all things associated with NASA’s interface with the public.
PROP—Propulsion. An MCC controller who monitors the shuttle RCS and OMS propulsion systems.
PS—Payload Specialist. A “part-time” astronaut trained for a specific experiment. PSes are not career NASA astronauts and receive only safety and habitability training on the shuttle.
RCS—Reaction Control System. A system of forty-four small rocket motors on the tail and nose of the orbiter that control the vehicle’s attitude and are also used in small orbit changes, e.g., during the final stages of a rendezvous or separation from a deployed satellite.
RHC—Rotational Hand Controller. The “stick” used to rotate the tip of the robot arm about a point. The CDR’s and PLT’s control sticks, used to maneuver the orbiter, are also referred to as RHCs.
RMS—Remote Manipulator System. The Canadian-built robot arm operated from the rear cockpit of the orbiter. It is used to capture and release satellites, maneuver spacewalking astronauts and cargo, and for vehicle inspections (through its end-mounted TV camera).
RSLS—Redundant Set Launch Sequencer. The software module in the shuttle’s computers that controls the final