Sooooo, if I wanted to?

[bigdad84]

If for some reason I absolutely needed to get to the ISS, could I hop inside a dragon capsule? Even if it's meant for just cargo, it's pressurized during the whole flight? And survives re-entry? I don't see why not?

[Canopus]

I guess there is little to now place for you though when its full of cargo or trash.

[Naten]

Just...

1.) Put on a G-force suit or take the zero-pressure pills so you don't black out.

2.) Put on scuba gear.

3.) Hold on tight.

4.) Pray to (your god if you have one. If you don't, just pray and hope someone hears you.) not fall out right away.

It's the logical thing to do.

[Canopus]

Just...

1.) Put on a G-force suit or take the zero-pressure pills so you don't black out.

2.) Put on scuba gear.

3.) Hold on tight.

4.) Pray to (your god if you have one. If you don't, just pray and hope someone hears you.) not fall out right away.

It's the logical thing to do.

Why would he need a G-suit and Scuba gear? It thought the Cargo dragon works like the Manned version? Edited November 25, 2013 by Canopus

[magnemoe]

Why would he need a G-suit and Scuba gear? It thought the Cargo dragon works like the Manned version?

I don't think it has other enviroment systems than heating /cooling so you would run out of air.

Not sure if you get to high g forces during launch but the splashdown is probably brutal, think soyouz without braking rockets.

Anyway an 4g launch without an good seat would not be pleasant.

[Canopus]

I don't think it has other enviroment systems than heating /cooling so you would run out of air.

Not sure if you get to high g forces during launch but the splashdown is probably brutal, think soyouz without braking rockets.

Anyway an 4g launch without an good seat would not be pleasant.

Sure the G-forces would be unpleasant but the question is if he would survive it. The Oxygen issue is something to consider though...

[legoheli]

You wouldn't need a G-suit at all unless you're really overweight. 4G isn't a lot.

You would need some sort of oxygen supply since the Cargo Dragon has a very limited amount of oxygen - for returning some experiments it is needed to have an environment with an oxygen atmosphere in order to keep things as close to the ISS as possible, but since there is no intention to use this version for actual human beings, there isn't a lot of it.

Regarding the splashdown I don't think it would be too bad, really. It is water we're talking about, and yes, it will be uncomfortable and I would recommend lying down on the bottom (but who would be standing anyway?). If for some reason the burn had a malfunction and you were headed for a landing on dry land? Well... The cosmonaut who landed in a Soyuz with no braking rockets broke all of his teeth during landing even though he was in a suspended seat.

[Albert VDS]

Elon Musk has stated in a press conference, after the splashdown of the first ISS mission, that a stowaway could survive reentry.

[Camacha]

Elon Musk has stated in a press conference, after the splashdown of the first ISS mission, that a stowaway could survive reentry.

Now that is just asking for trouble

[Starwhip]

Elon Musk has stated in a press conference, after the splashdown of the first ISS mission, that a stowaway could survive reentry.

Maybe they tested it...

[lajoswinkler]

Surviving is one thing, surviving intact is another.

[3_bit]

On the Space Shuttle they had a little ball you could crawl inside of and zip shut in the event of cabin decompression, where you could sit until rescue. It had it's own self-contained oxygen supply, and I imagine it would solve any potential Oxygen issues. However, the capsule might have enough oxygen in it already if you bring a CO2 filter along and have only one person in the capsule, to make it to the ISS, provided you're doing a KSP-like rendezvous involving orbital insertion right next to the station.

[dharak1]

How long do cargo missions stay in orbit anyway? Before docking that is. How would they even react if someone managed to get to the ISS in one? It would be pretty damn hard carrying the tanks and stuff with you...

[jwenting]

How long do cargo missions stay in orbit anyway? Before docking that is. How would they even react if someone managed to get to the ISS in one? It would be pretty damn hard carrying the tanks and stuff with you...

Assuming you could get on board of a heavily guarded capsule undetected before it was sealed in its fairings, assuming then the internal sensors on board would not detect the change in conditions (temperature, CO2 and O2 levels, etc. etc.) and you'd get caught anyway, then assuming you'd survive the launch without being squashed by something, your additional mass on top of the calculated mission mass would throw off the rocket's trajectory, causing it to malfunction and likely crash.

[Aghanim]

Assuming you could get on board of a heavily guarded capsule undetected before it was sealed in its fairings, assuming then the internal sensors on board would not detect the change in conditions (temperature, CO2 and O2 levels, etc. etc.) and you'd get caught anyway, then assuming you'd survive the launch without being squashed by something, your additional mass on top of the calculated mission mass would throw off the rocket's trajectory, causing it to malfunction and likely crash.

Well there is a real life SAS anyway...

[Scotius]

Not to mention added weight of your body, and whatever life supporting stuff you would take would mess up carefully calculated amount of fuel in the rocket. We KSP-ers do know that sometimes extra bit of weight makes all the difference between orbit and suborbital flight ending with a lithobraking.

[lajoswinkler]

How long do cargo missions stay in orbit anyway? Before docking that is. How would they even react if someone managed to get to the ISS in one? It would be pretty damn hard carrying the tanks and stuff with you...

I think it can be few days in orbit, slowly approaching the station. Soyuz takes like 6 hours or so, because there are people inside.

Supply ships take a lot more.

[Godot]

I think it can be few days in orbit, slowly approaching the station. Soyuz takes like 6 hours or so, because there are people inside.

Supply ships take a lot more.

Only the current, most modern versions.

Earlier versions of Soyuz from just a few years ago took 2 days from start to docking with ISS

[KerbMav]

Actually, I had the exact same thought lately.

[Nibb31]

Only the current, most modern versions.

Earlier versions of Soyuz from just a few years ago took 2 days from start to docking with ISS

It used to take several days but now they can do a direct ascent and rendez-vous with the station in a matter of hours.

One of the reasons several days were preferable was because it was less stressful on the crew. There was too much work to do in a single shift: crew preparation, hours of pre-flight activities, launch, spacecraft configuration, rendez-vous, approach, docking, all this without time to actually take a break, stretch, have lunch, go to the bathroom, etc... It makes for a hell of a work day all suited up and without time to leave your seat, so they decided that it was better to go for a long rendez-vous.

It's mainly the better automation and shortened pre-flight ops that makes it more manageable to go for a direct rendez-vous. This is why the CC-Dev competition vehicles don't have a toilet or galley.

Edited November 27, 2013 by Nibb31