May 16, 2008

Mountaineering and Space Exploration

Astronaut Scott Parazynski Everest Podcasts 16 May 2008

"Hi again, this is Scott. Just wanted to make a few comments about the tools that are required to scale a mountain as it compared with going outside on a spacewalk. It's actually quite similar, in many regards... We're at great heights, of course gravity affects us in space a little bit differently as we're in a free fall around the earth but here on Mt. Everest if you're to slip and fall, it could mean a long ride, of several thousand feet...with a pretty bad outcome."

Mountaineering and Climbing on Mars

"Initial human missions to Mars will be a precious commodity wherein a maximum amount of information is gathered by each crew. As was the case during innumerable terrestrial missions of exploration, the Martian terrain that visiting crews must traverse in order to gain an understanding will often be difficult."


Posted by kcowing at May 16, 2008 8:43 PM
Comments

As with human space flight, there are serious impacts to our physiology.

Here is a Scientific American article.

Into Thin Air: Mountain Climbing Kills Brain Cells

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=brain-cells-into-thin-air

I have twice climbed over 8000 m. I will not again.

rog

Posted by: rog at May 16, 2008 10:04 PM

I appreciate Keith's nice JBIS article, which puts in some perspective how Scott's wonderful adventure bears on space exploration.

But c'mon. One big difference is that Everest has been climbed many many times. Everest climbs have a wonderful operational template, the likes of which our first voyage to Mars will not. It would be fascinating to follow an adventure on Earth involving going new places that are hard to go to, involving some real risk, where the lack of such a template forced innovation and creativity.

The big difference is personal adventure versus national adventure. Scott's team is hard on the heels of a 15 year old, a 64 year old, and quite recently even the Olympic Torch. They're literally walking in preexisting footprints, and stepping on trash left behind.

Again, I have nothing but admiration for Scott Parazynski. But it is of some symbolic significance that NASA Watch is following this climb as it follows what has been called "the return to the Moon for the first time."

Posted by: Dick Lewin at May 17, 2008 12:23 PM
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