The Association of Space
Explorers' (ASE) Committee on Crew Safety and Technology
Development has provided this material to the X Prize
Foundation as critical vehicle, crew/passenger and public
safety issues that should be addressed prior to any
attempt to fly sub-orbital vehicles under the auspices of
the X Prize competition. The ASE will not endorse or
certify the safety of any X Prize contestant or vehicle.
This documentation is advisory in nature and it will be
the prerogative of the X Prize Foundation to accept any,
none, or all of the recommendations set forth herein.
These recommendations are based on the premise that the X
Prize competition is a pioneering activity and that some
risk to contestants and vehicles is acceptable, provided
that third party risks are identified, addressed and
resolved satisfactorily relative to pertinent host
country regulations and statutes.
The X-Prize Foundation should supply
registrants with an initial safety questionnaire that
must be completed to the Foundation's satisfaction as far
in advance of the flight attempt as possible. This
questionnaire should attempt to demonstrate through
its written answers and supporting documentation, the
safety competence of the registrant by exploring his/her
understanding of relevant safety performance standards. A
second, and final, pre-flight safety questionnaire must
be completed to the Foundation's satisfaction just prior
to an official attempt to win the prize. This
questionnaire should attempt to demonstrate through
its written answers and supporting documentation that
the relevant safety performance standards have been met
by the registrant. The completed questionnaires and
supporting documentation will be reviewed by an
independent outside group that has professional expertise
in space flight safety. For liability purposes, the
X-Prize Foundation will have the final authority on any
registrant contractual issues, including the safety
program.
1. On the first launch of an X-Prize
vehicle, ONLY essential crew members shall be carried. If
this crew size is greater than one, the contestant shall
be required to justify the need for the additional
individuals. The first launch need not be a competitive
event under the auspices of the X-Prize competition, but
must be appropriately documented if it is not.
2. A higher level of escape
capability/survival provisions will be required for any
passengers carried on competitive flights than would be
necessary for the (command) pilot alone.
1. Ground
Safety
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a. Hazardous
materials handling and accident prevention and
mitigation.
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a-1. Demonstrate
understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation safety
regulations.
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a-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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b. Public access
to servicing or launch vehicle areas.
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b-1. Demonstrate
the ability to develop and maintain a safety
awareness program, to analyze potential hazards,
and to maintain clear danger zones during safety-
critical operations (includes both viewing
considerations and general contractor
accessibility).
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b-2. Demonstrate
a safety awareness program, hazards analysis, and
dangers zones.
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c. Proximity to
inhabited areas.
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c-1. Demonstrate
understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation energetic
materials quantity-distance regulations.
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c-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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d.
Electromagnetic interference (EMI)/compatibility
(EMC).
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d-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to conduct EMC/EMI
vulnerability analysis and comply with applicable
launch site host nation regulations on
electromagnetic emissions.
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d-2. Demonstrate
results analysis and compliance.
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e. Ionizing
radiation protection.
(Applicable only if ionizing
radiation source(s) included in vehicle or
support equipment.)
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e-1. Demonstrate
understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation ionizing
radiation safety regulations.
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e-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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f. Environmental
protection.
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f-1. Demonstrate
understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation environmental
policy/ regulations.
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f-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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2. Launch
Safety
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a. Launch
authority.
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a-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of launch authority, management
responsibility relative to launch authority, and
the intent to comply with applicable launch site
host nation regulations.
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a-2. Identify
management responsibility relative to launch
authority and demonstrate compliance.
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b. Abort systems
on the pad.
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b-1. Demonstrate
understanding of launch pad abort scenarios and
means to mitigate the hazards.
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b-2. Demonstrate
ability to safe the launch vehicle within __
minutes from abort declaration.
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c. Debris
hazards.
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c-1. Demonstrate
understanding of debris hazards in launch area
and means to prevent personnel injury and damage
to public property.
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c-2. Demonstrate
ability to contain debris in launch area.
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d. Escape
systems and contingency life support.
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d-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to provide for crew
and passenger escape and life support in all
identified off-nominal events.
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d-2. Demonstrate
the ability of the crew and passenger(s) to
perform an unaided escape of the vehicle and the
ability of the life support system to function in
all identified off-nominal events.
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e. Contingency
and emergency planning.
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e-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to develop and comply
with a contingency and emergency preparedness
plan.
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e-2. Develop a
contingency and emergency preparedness plan and
demonstrate its adequacy and the ability to
comply with it.
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f. Local fire
department, police, medical/hospital plans and
operations.
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f-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to coordinate
required emergency support as required by the
contingency and emergency preparedness plan.
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f-2.
Demonstrate, through the contingency and
emergency preparedness plan, coordination of
required emergency support.
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3. Flight
Safety
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a. Control of
nominal flight hazards.
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a-1. Demonstrate
ability to identify and control the migration of
toxic vapors (including nominal venting and
plume) and the location of staged vehicle
hardware recovery sites in the downrange launch
corridor.
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a-2. Demonstrate
the control of toxic vapors ( including nominal
venting and plume) and the location of staged
vehicle hardware recovery sites in the downrange
launch corridor.
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b. Control of
off-nominal flight hazards.
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b-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to use a flight
termination system , vehicle system, or crew
procedure to reliably control errant flight and
the impact effects of propellant-bearing hardware
within the agreed to downrange corridor.
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b-2. Demonstrate
how a flight termination system, vehicle system,
or crew procedure will reliably control errant
flight and minimize the impact effects of
propellant-bearing hardware within the agreed to
downrange launch corridor.
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c. Intact abort.
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c-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to provide the
ability to abort the launch and return it intact,
to a planned or contingency landing site.
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c-2. Demonstrate
the ability to abort the launch and return it
intact, to a planned or contingency landing site.
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d. Airspace and
air traffic control.
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d-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need to comply and work
within the launch site host nation airspace and
air traffic control regulations and systems
during all flight regimes.
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d-2. Demonstrate
compliance and the ability to work within the
launch site host nation airspace and air traffic
control regulations and systems, including the
vehicle being equipped with an operating Air
Traffic Control Radar Beacon System (ATCRBS)
transponder with Mode C and altitude reporting
capability up to FL 700, or equivalent host
nation equipment.
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e. Debris
hazards.
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e-1. Demonstrate
understanding of debris hazards in downrange
corridor and means to prevent personnel injury
and damage to public property.
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e-2. Demonstrate
ability to contain debris in downrange corridor.
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f. Trajectory
and landing site predictions.
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f-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to predict vehicle
trajectory during powered flight and landing
regimes.
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f-2. Demonstrate
predictions of vehicle trajectory and landing
site, including methods used to make the
predictions.
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4. Landing
Safety
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a. Compliance
with applicable range safety requirements.
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a-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation range safety
requirements.
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a-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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b. Vehicle
safing after landing.
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b-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to safe the vehicle
after landing to protect landing site personnel
and public.
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b-2. Demonstrate
the ability to safe the vehicle after landing to
protect landing site personnel and public.
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c. Toxic
vapors/hazardous systems controls.
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c-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the hazards and intent to
protect personnel and the public from toxic
vapors and hazardous systems in the post-landing
regime.
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c-2. Demonstrate
the ability to control toxic vapors and hazardous
systems throughout the post-landing regime to
protect landing site personnel and public.
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d.
Electromagnetic emissions.
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d-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation regulations on
electromagnetic emissions.
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d-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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e. Post-landing
recovery systems.
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e-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of vehicle recovery systems and
scenarios and the intent to provide for safe
recovery of the vehicle to the launch site from
all potential landing sites.
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e-2. Demonstrate
the ability to safely recover the vehicle and
return it to the launch site from all potential
landing sites.
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5. Mission
Control
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a. Protect the
public, property, and launch landing site
facilities and personnel.
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a-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to comply with
applicable launch site host nation commercial
launch site and landing site regulations and/or
range safety requirements throughout all flight
regimes.
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a-2. Demonstrate
compliance.
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b. Development
and compliance with mission rules.
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b-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need for mission rules
and the management structure and discipline
required to comply with such rules.
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b-2. Demonstrate
mission rules and the associated management
structure and discipline.
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c. Crew and
passenger selection, health, and training.
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c-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to manage crew and
passenger selection, health screening in light of
flight regime, and adequacy of training.
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c-2. Demonstrate
management of crew and passenger selection
process, health screening, and adequacy of
training.
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d.
Telemetry/systems monitoring and mission control.
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d-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to provide mission
monitoring capability through all flight regimes.
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d-2. Demonstrate
ability to provide mission monitoring capability
through all flight regimes.
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e. Flight
termination decision criteria and authority.
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e-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need for flight
termination decision criteria and the management
structure, authority, responsibilities, and
knowledge needed to implement a real-time
decision making process.
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e-2. Demonstrate
the existence of understood flight termination
decision criteria and the associated management
structure, authority, responsibilities, and
knowledge.
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f. Crew rescue.
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f-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need and intent to
develop the capability to conduct crew rescue for
identified off-nominal scenarios.
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f-2. Demonstrate
the ability to conduct crew rescue.
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g. Weather
constraints.
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g-1. Demonstrate
an understanding and intent to develop and comply
with self-imposed and launch facility/range
weather constraints on launch, flight, and
landing.
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g-2. Identify
self-imposed weather-related launch constraints
and compliance with launch facility/range weather
constraints, including the requirement that AT
THE TIME OF LAUNCH COMMIT, the landing site
weather will be acceptable, and forecast to
remain so for the projected time of landing and
for two hours thereafter.
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6. Vehicle
Design Safety
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a. Factors of
safety.
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a-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of factors of safety (including
design versus achieved) and the intent to include
them in vehicle design.
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a-2. Demonstrate
adequate factors of safety through presentation
of test or analysis results.
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b. Reliability
of safety critical systems.
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b-1. Identify
the methods that will be used to provide for, and
verify the reliability of safety critical systems
(e.g., similar and dissimilar redundancy, as
appropriate).
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b-2. Demonstrate
that design is such that no combination of two
(2) failures, or two (2) operator errors, or one
of each can result in loss of life.
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c. Safety risk
assessment.
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c-1. Demonstrate
ability to identify, assess, and prioritize (by
probability and severity of consequences) safety
risks in all phases of vehicle operation.
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c-2. Present a
prioritized listing of operational safety risks.
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d. Inadvertent
operation.
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d-1. Demonstrate
the capability of the vehicle systems to inhibit
inadvertent operations.
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d-2. Demonstrate
that design is such that inadvertent operations
which could result in a loss of life are
controlled by a minimum of three (3) independent
inhibits.
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e. Fire
suppression.
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e-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of pad and crew compartment fire
hazards and the intent to provide for appropriate
fire suppression throughout the launch and
post-launch regimes.
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e-2. Demonstrate
the ability to safely suppress a fire in the crew
compartment and on the pad throughout the launch
and post-launch regimes.
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f. Verification
and validation.
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f-1. Demonstrate
method that will be used for verification and
validation of the safety critical design
functions.
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f-2. Demonstrate
verification and validation of the safety
critical design functions.
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g. Independent
Verification and Validation (IV&V).
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g-1. Identify
any intent to perform IV&V on flight control
and safety critical software.
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g-2. Present
results of any IV&V on flight control and
safety critical software.
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h. Failure Modes
and Effects Analysis (FMEA).
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h-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need for FMEA, including
issues of redundancy, degraded operations modes,
early propulsion termination, etc.
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h-2. Demonstrate
the level of FMEA performed and present results
and rationales.
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i. Hazard
Analysis (HA).
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i-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need for HA, including
potential causes, consequences, probability of
events, controls, and control verification
methods.
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i-2. Demonstrate
the level of HA performed and present results of
those that have loss of life consequences.
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j. Software
safety.
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j-1. If not
included in the HA, demonstrate the understanding
and ability to conduct an analysis of safety
critical software components, including potential
hazards, consequence, likelihood, controls, and
verification of controls.
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j-2. If not
included in the HA, present the results of an
analysis of safety critical software components.
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k. Life support.
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k-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need to design and build
reliable life support systems that will perform
safely through all flight regimes, contingency
aborts, escape, and post-landing operations.
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k-2. Demonstrate
the design and reliability of life support
systems.
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l. Escape
systems.
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l-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of crew escape systems and the
off-nominal conditions under which the systems
would be employed to assure crew safety.
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l-2. Demonstrate
capability of crew escape systems.
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m.
Communications systems.
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m-1. Demonstrate
an understanding of the need for communications
systems to comply with launch site host nation
regulations on electromagnetic emissions.
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m-2. Demonstrate
communications systems compliance with launch
site host nation regulations on electromagnetic
emissions.
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