NASA is looking to privatize astronaut rescue services

美国宇航局正在寻求将宇航员救援服务私有化

NASA is asking private industry and academia for ideas for new rescue services for its astronauts on Earth in the event of emergencies during rocket launches, spacecraft free flight or landings.

美国宇航局正在征求私营企业和学术界的想法，为其在地球上的宇航员提供新的救援服务，以防火箭发射、航天器自由飞行或着陆期间发生紧急情况。

The agency published a request for information (RFI) on April 23 seeking information from "all interested parties," including private businesses and universities, for astronaut crew rescue services for NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP). Commercial crew is the program that pairs NASA astronaut crews (and Russian cosmonauts on seat swap assignments) with private launch providers like SpaceX or Boeing.

该机构于4月23日发布了一份信息请求(RFI)，向包括私营企业和大学在内的“所有感兴趣的各方”寻求信息，为NASA的商业乘员计划(CCP)提供宇航员乘员救援服务。商业机组是将美国宇航局宇航员机组（以及执行座位交换任务的俄罗斯宇航员）与SpaceX或波音等私人发射提供商配对的计划。

Currently, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is responsible for rescuing astronauts in the event of emergencies here on Earth, NASA notes in the RFI. But the agency is now looking for more options for "rescue during off-nominal situations beyond the requirements of CCP mission providers," the RFI notes. A spokesperson from NASA's Commercial Crew Program told Space.com that these commercial options, if they are available, may be more cost-effective and flexible than what is currently available. In addition, the request is "part of NASA's continued effort to enable a robust commercial industry and supports policy that encourages development of a thriving United States commercial sector," the spokesperson added.

目前，美国。NASA在RFI中指出，国防部(DoD)负责在地球上发生紧急情况时营救宇航员。但RFI指出，该机构现在正在寻找更多选择，以“在超出CCP任务提供商要求的非名义情况下进行救援”。美国宇航局商业乘员计划的发言人告诉Space.com，这些商业选项如果可用，可能比目前可用的更具成本效益和灵活性。此外，该发言人补充说，这一请求是“美国宇航局持续努力的一部分，以实现强大的商业产业，并支持鼓励美国商业部门蓬勃发展的政策”。

NASA says that these new astronaut crew rescue services are needed for all Commercial Crew Program missions starting in 2026 and running through 2030, the year the agency has said will be the end of the International Space Station.

NASA表示，从2026年开始到2030年的所有商业乘员计划任务都需要这些新的宇航员乘员救援服务，该机构表示，这一年将是国际空间站的终结。

These commercial rescue services could entail approaching spacecraft on the ground or in the sea and opening hatches, retrieving crew from spacecraft and providing medical care while transporting astronauts to medical facilities.

这些商业救援服务可能需要接近地面或海上的航天器并打开舱门，从航天器中救出机组人员，并在将宇航员运送到医疗设施的同时提供医疗护理。

Whenever NASA chooses a new contractor for its astronaut rescue services, it will be responsible for providing "near-real-time spacecraft status" and landing locations to the best of its knowledge if rescue services are required.

每当NASA为其宇航员救援服务选择新的承包商时，如果需要救援服务，它将负责提供“近乎实时的航天器状态”和尽其所知的着陆地点。

These services would need to be able to be provided "along the ascent corridor which runs from the launchpad at [Kennedy Space Center], up the coast of the U.S. and Canada, and across to the coast of Ireland," NASA says in the RFI. Personnel must be able to respond to emergencies in pre-designated water landing zones within 24 hours of being notified of an emergency. The agency says rescue personnel must be trained in how to safely reach rescue locations and provide required medical care to astronaut crews on-site.

美国宇航局在RFI中表示，这些服务需要能够“沿着从[肯尼迪航天中心]发射台开始的上升走廊，沿着美国和加拿大海岸，一直延伸到爱尔兰海岸”提供。人员必须能够在接到紧急情况通知后24小时内对预先指定的水上着陆区的紧急情况做出反应。该机构表示，救援人员必须接受如何安全到达救援地点并为现场宇航员提供所需医疗护理的培训。

The U.S. Air Force currently has a unit known as Detachment 3 that trains for Commercial Crew Program rescues and is responsible for "coordinating astronaut rescue and recovery, contingency landing site support, payload security, medical support, coordination of airlift/sealift for contingency operations, as well as other support services required in the event of a spacecraft emergency," according to an Air Force statement.

根据空军的一份声明，美国空军目前有一个名为第3支队的单位，为商业机组人员计划救援进行训练，负责“协调宇航员救援和恢复、应急着陆点支持、有效载荷安全、医疗支持、应急行动的空运/海运协调，以及航天器紧急情况下所需的其他支持服务”。

Detachment 3 has personnel stationed at Patrick Space Force Base close to Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Joint Base Charleston in South Carolina, and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii.

第3支队在佛罗里达州肯尼迪航天中心附近的帕特里克太空军基地、南卡罗来纳州查尔斯顿联合基地和夏威夷珍珠港-希卡姆联合基地都有人员驻扎。

Detachment 3 is currently the only unit within the U.S. military tasked with supporting rescue operations during Commercial Crew Program launches. The unit's motto is "These things we do, that others may live," which reflects their mission to ensure that "an astronaut's worst day is not their last." It was created in 1959 to support the United States' first crewed spaceflight program, Project Mercury, and later supported the space shuttle program. In 2020, Detachment 3 supported the first crewed flight of NASA's Commercial Crew Program with SpaceX's Demo-2 mission.

第3支队是目前美军中唯一一支负责在商业乘员计划启动期间支持救援行动的部队。该单位的座右铭是“我们做的这些事情，其他人可能会活下去”，这反映了他们的使命，即确保“宇航员最糟糕的一天不是他们的最后一天”。它创建于1959年，是为了支持美国第一个载人航天计划“水星计划”，后来又支持了航天飞机计划。2020年，Detachment 3通过SpaceX的Demo-2任务支持了NASA商业载人计划的首次载人飞行。

According to NASA, U.S. Air Force personnel and aircraft are pre-positioned along key locations during Commercial Crew launches. If rescue is necessary within 200 nautical miles (370 km) of the agency's Florida launch site, an HC-130 aircraft and two HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopters will be deployed from Patrick Space Force Base near Kennedy Space Center.

据美国宇航局称，在商业载人发射期间，美国空军人员和飞机会预先部署在关键位置。如果在距离该机构佛罗里达州发射场200海里（370公里）范围内需要救援，将从肯尼迪航天中心附近的帕特里克太空部队基地部署一架HC-130飞机和两架HH-60铺路鹰直升机。

If a rescue is required farther away, a C-17 Globemaster aircraft would be deployed from Joint Base Charleston or Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.

如果需要更远的地方进行救援，一架C-17环球霸王飞机将从查尔斯顿联合基地或珍珠港-希卡姆联合基地部署。

These military personnel and assets coordinate with SpaceX recovery teams, who typically operate two "fast boats" and a large recovery vessel to recover crew and spacecraft during nominal returns to Earth. One of the two fast boats recovers the parachute that slows the company's Dragon spacecraft during descent, while the other prepares the capsule for recovery by its larger vessel. Medical personnel are stationed on the recovery vessel to respond to emergencies.

这些军事人员和资产与SpaceX回收团队协调，他们通常操作两艘“快艇”和一艘大型回收船，在名义上返回地球期间回收机组人员和航天器。两艘快艇中的一艘回收降落伞，降落伞在下降过程中减慢了该公司的龙飞船的速度，而另一艘则准备太空舱，以便由更大的飞船回收。医疗人员驻扎在回收船上以应对紧急情况。

SpaceX operates two recovery vessels, named "MV Megan" and "MV Shannon."

SpaceX运营着两艘回收船，分别命名为“MV Megan”和“MV Shannon”。

NASA is seeking to change rescue service providers at a time when many in the U.S. government and even the agency itself are looking to shift more of the agency's tasks and responsibilities onto private industry.

美国宇航局正在寻求改变救援服务提供商，而此时美国政府甚至该机构本身的许多人都在寻求将该机构的更多任务和责任转移到私营企业。

The commercial space industry has grown and flourished in recent years, and NASA, like the U.S. federal government as a whole, is facing budget cuts and an overall reduction in size as part of the Trump administration's efforts to shrink the size of the American government and cut spending.

近年来，商业航天产业不断发展和繁荣，作为特朗普政府缩小美国政府规模和削减开支的努力的一部分，NASA和整个美国联邦政府一样，正面临预算削减和规模整体缩减。

Editor's note: This story was updated to include comments from NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

编者注：本文已更新，纳入了美国宇航局商业机组人员计划的评论。