{"id":14739,"date":"2017-04-04T18:19:59","date_gmt":"2017-04-04T10:19:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/ziplines-installed-to-whisk-personnel-from-danger-at-starliner-launch-pad\/"},"modified":"2017-04-04T18:19:59","modified_gmt":"2017-04-04T10:19:59","slug":"ziplines-installed-to-whisk-personnel-from-danger-at-starliner-launch-pad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/ziplines-installed-to-whisk-personnel-from-danger-at-starliner-launch-pad\/","title":{"rendered":"Ziplines installed to whisk personnel from danger at Starliner launch pad"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Commercial ZipRiders will be used as the emergency escape system at the Atlas 5 launch complex. Credit: NASA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

CAPE CANAVERAL \u2014 Ziplines are used by thrill-seekers in adventures around the world, but now they are coming to the U.S. space program as the emergency escape system for personnel at Cape Canaveral\u2019s Complex 41.<\/p>\n

Commercial, off-the-shelf ziplines have been installed on the 172-foot-level of pad\u2019s newly-constructed Crew Access Tower and fully tested in support of Boeing\u2019s Starliner spacecraft that will begin launching astronauts into space next year atop United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rockets.<\/p>\n

\u201cULA is absolutely focused on the safety of the crews we will be supporting and although we hope to never use it, we are excited to announce the Emergency Egress System is fully operational,\u201d said Gary Wentz, the company\u2019s vice president of Human & Commercial Services.<\/p>\n

Watch video of the zipline testing at Complex 41.<\/p>\n

ULA is the launch provider for Boeing under NASA\u2019s Commercial Crew Program that aims to restore the ability to launch astronauts from U.S. soil. Two test flights of Starliner capsules are planned in 2018 before NASA certifies the craft to begin ferrying crews to the International Space Station.<\/p>\n

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The ziplines extend from the 172-foot-level of the Crew Access Tower. Credit: United Launch Alliance<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The new tower at Complex 41 was built in sections off-site, then the pre-assembled pieces were stacked at the pad in between on-going launches of the busy Atlas 5. Final outfitting work is underway now.<\/p>\n

Although extremely unlikely to ever be used, the gantry needed a method to whisk pad workers and the astronauts to safety in the event of a serious problem, similar to the underground \u201cRubber Room\u201d used during Apollo and the slidewire baskets in the space shuttle era.<\/p>\n

See our previous pictorial on the Rubber Room.<\/p>\n

The solution ULA devised was ziplines to escape from Level 12 on the tower at top speeds of 40 mph. Each person evacuating will use patented \u201cZipRiders\u201d adapted for the pad, essentially sitting in chair-like harnesses to travel along cabling in just 30 seconds to a spot 1,340 feet away from the rocket. Emergency vehicles will be pre-positioned in the landing zone for the personnel to flee the complex. <\/p>\n

\u201cThrough our partnership with Terra-Nova, a company that designs and builds ziplines for recreational use, a modified, off-the-shelf product has been designed and constructed to meet our needs and reduce costs, while maintaining reliability and safety,\u201d said Wentz.<\/p>\n

The system can accommodate up to 20 personnel. <\/p>\n

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One of the recent tests of the Complex 41 emergency escape system. Credit: United Launch Alliance<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cCrew safety is paramount, and the ULA emergency egress system hits the mark for an effective yet simple system that is adapted from other commercial applications,\u201d said Chris Ferguson, Boeing director of Starliner Crew and Mission Systems and a former NASA astronaut.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe look forward to spaceflight operations next year knowing that every measure to protect the flight and ground crew has been employed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ZipRider allows a user to control their speed with brake handles and make a gentle stop at the landing zone. But there\u2019s also springs on each cable for braking.<\/p>\n

Terra-Nova will install a training system located north of the crew tower for riders to practice on before final training on the operational emergency egress system. <\/p>\n

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The ZipRider landing area is 1,340 feet away from the rocket. Credit: United Launch Alliance<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Commercial ZipRiders will be used as the emergency escape system at the Atlas 5 launch complex. Credit: NASA CAPE CANAVERAL \u2014 Ziplines are used by thrill-seekers in adventures around the world, but now they are coming to the U.S. space program as the emergency escape system for personnel at Cape Canaveral\u2019s Complex 41. Commercial, off-the-shelf […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[724,670,524,1565,1306,750],"class_list":["post-14739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-atlas-5","tag-boeing","tag-commercial-crew","tag-cst-100","tag-starliner","tag-united-launch-alliance"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14739"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14739"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14739\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}