CRITICAL THINKING
DRESS REHEARSAL
Maj. Karoline Hood, left, visited the Neutral Buoyancy Lab with Army astronaut Col. Drew Morgan, second from left, and fellow space operations officer Lt. Col. Adam Springer, right. Morgan was preparing to practice a simulated extravehicular activity, or spacewalk. (Photos courtesy of Maj. Karoline Hood)
SIRI, BUT FOR SPACE
Hood attended the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, where she interacted with a mockup of “CIMON,” the Crew Interactive Mobile Companion. CIMON is an AI robot that has been used on the International Space Station.
As a project engineer, Hood facilitates and provides tech- nical reviews on space systems and hardware—including preparing spacecraft for flight—and supports launches and landings. That means she works closely with compa- nies like SpaceX and Boeing to ensure vehicle safety. Hood ensures companies are meeting contract require- ments, identifying variances in those requirements and getting them approved, and she is responsible for the overall certification of a spacecraft in all phases of flight. “One of the vehicles I am working on right now is going to be launching astronauts in the spring timeframe, and it’s a SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicle that has already flown,” she said. “We’re in the process of refurbishing it, and so one of my jobs is following it through the refurbishment process.” All transportation vehicles in the Commercial
Crew Program, like the Crew Dragon, must be certified to meet NASA requirements.
Preparing a spacecraft for flight usually culminates with a crew equipment integration test, Hood explained, during which the crew validates all the different interfaces, like seat rotation, hatches and spacesuit umbilical connec- tions. During such a test, she also ensures astronauts are also able to inspect the vehicle before it is launched and uses their feedback to help improve the capsule. For example, they are required to ensure there are no sharp edges that could puncture a pressurized spacesuit, or to add Velcro in certain places for placement of various emergency cue cards, she said.
“I’ve had some pretty unique assignments.”
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