Les infos clés
En résumé
For 30 years the Space Shuttle enabled human spaceflight in the United States and partner nations. Learn all about the Shuttle with this unique course, which also serves as a unique historical record. Since the lecturers are the same people who designed, built and operated the Shuttle, this is a first-hand testimonial to the world’s first reusable spacecraft.
This course examines how the Space Shuttle was designed and how its design was influenced by economics and politics. The course goes into detail on many of the Shuttle’s subsystems (e.g. rocket engines, thermal protection, aerodynamics, environmental control and life support, communications, etc.) and explains how the Shuttle was operated (launch, mission control, payloads, etc.). The course also uses the Space Shuttle to present the fundamentals of Systems Engineering.
Students will gain a systems perspective on the complexities of Shuttle development and its operations. It explores both the Shuttle’s successes and its shortcomings and has valuable object lessons for future space initiatives. The Shuttle is a valuable case study in the advantages and difficulties involved in reusable space systems - particularly relevant today as reusability is a key requirement of many rockets and spacecraft currently under development.
In addition, understanding how the Shuttle was first conceived and how it achieved governmental approval is relevant for understanding how politics and economics interact with technology on all large public programs.
The lectures are organized in three fundamental sections: history and policy, technical design of Shuttle systems, and how the Shuttle was operated. Although the sections relate to one another, students can benefit from any of the sections independently.
This course does not require advanced mathematics. It is targeted to students with a variety of interests including the history of human spaceflight, space policy, the design of human spaceflight systems, the operation of complex space systems, and principles of systems engineering.
Image courtesy of NASA: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/739339main_space_shuttle_challenger_04-04-1983.jpg
- Fundamentals of Systems Engineering
- How a major technical program gets governmental approval
- Design of human spaceflight systems
- Operation of complex spaceflight systems
Le programme
- Introduction to Systems Engineering
- Structures and Thermal Protection
- Rocket Engines
- Aerodynamics
- Mechanisms
- Hydraulic Systems
- Environmental Control and Life Support
- Guidance, Navigation and Control
- Launch Operations
- Shuttle Abort Modes
- Mission Control
- Payload Operations
- Extravehicular Activity (Spacewalking)
- Shuttle Accident Investigations
- Flight Testing the Space Shuttle
Les intervenants
Jeffrey Hoffman
Former NASA Astronaut, Professor
MIT
Aaron Cohen
Director, NASA Johnson Space Center, Space Shuttle Orbiter Program Manager
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Le concepteur
Le Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), en français Institut de technologie du Massachusetts, est un institut de recherche américain et une université, spécialisé dans les domaines de la science et de la technologie. Situé à Cambridge, dans l'État du Massachusetts, à proximité immédiate de Boston, au nord-est des États-Unis, le MIT est souvent considéré comme une des meilleures universités mondiales.
Il édite la Technology Review, une revue scientifique consacrée aux sciences de l'ingénieur et à l'innovation.
La plateforme
EdX est une plateforme d'apprentissage en ligne (dite FLOT ou MOOC). Elle héberge et met gratuitement à disposition des cours en ligne de niveau universitaire à travers le monde entier. Elle mène également des recherches sur l'apprentissage en ligne et la façon dont les utilisateurs utilisent celle-ci. Elle est à but non lucratif et la plateforme utilise un logiciel open source.
EdX a été fondée par le Massachusetts Institute of Technology et par l'université Harvard en mai 2012. En 2014, environ 50 écoles, associations et organisations internationales offrent ou projettent d'offrir des cours sur EdX. En juillet 2014, elle avait plus de 2,5 millions d'utilisateurs suivant plus de 200 cours en ligne.
Les deux universités américaines qui financent la plateforme ont investi 60 millions USD dans son développement. La plateforme France Université Numérique utilise la technologie openedX, supportée par Google.
