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Orlan-M

The Russian spacesuit in use aboard the International Space Station is the latest variant of the Orlan series, the Orlan-M.

Orlan is Russian for “Sea Eagle”. All Russian space- and pressure suits are named after birds. The suit worn on the Soyuz spaceship is the Sokol or “Falcon”. Other previous suits have been:

  • «Стриж», Strizh or “Swift”, intended for the Buran space shuttle.
  • «Ястреб», Yastreb “Hawk” and «Беркут», Berkut “Golden Eagle” suits worn on Voshkod and early Soyuz flights.
  • «Кречет», Krechet or “Gerfalcon” suit intended for the Soviet Moon landing program.

The Orlan-M is made by the Research, Development & Production Enterprise Zvezda (НПП «Звезда»), the company which has produced all Russian spacesuits and survival equipment since it was established on 2 October 1952. They are located in Tomilino, Moscow region.

Terminology

The Russian word for spacesuit is skafandr, скафандр (plural skafandry, скафандры). The “M” stands for modernized, modernizirovannyi, модернизированный.

Russians don’t seem to have a formal acronym for a spacewalk (as in EVA). These terms are generally used:

  • VKD, vnekabinnaya ili vnikorabel’naya deyatel’nost’, внекабинная или вникорабельная деятельность – translating roughly as out-of-cabin or -ship activity/work. (Thanks to Olaf Neumann for this)
  • Vykhod v otkrytyi kosmos, выход в открытый космос – “going out into open space” (from Levan)
  • Someone on the Novosti Kosmonavtiki forum suggested: ВКД (Внекорабельная Деятельность).
  • I have also seen just “vykhod” used in the NASA On-Orbit Reports (выход, plural выходы – literally “exits”). Perhaps this is more of a slang or shortened term.

I will usually use VKD to complement the NASA EVA acronym. I use “spacewalk” as a generic term, and “EVA” for specifically American spacewalks (i.e. wearing NASA EMUs).

Development

ESA and Zvezda had begun development work on a joint spacesuit called EVA SUIT 2000 in the early 1990s, but this was cancelled late in 1994 due to financial constraints on both sides. In 1995, when the Shuttle-Mir and ISS programs were underway, Zvezda decided to modify its next batch of Orlan-DMA suits destined for Mir with various improvements. Orlan-M suits numbered 4, 5 and 6 were delivered to Mir in 1997 and used for 36 spacewalks.

Zvezda and the U.S. manufacturer of NASA’s EMU suits, Hamilton-Sundstrand have also co-operated in ISS spacesuit development. Two Orlan suits were delivered to support training in the NASA hydrolab. The Orlan was also enabled so it could be used in the U.S. joint airlock, Quest, via a portable unit called the BSS-2M, БСС-2М; it is a suit control panel (БУС, BUS) and a bundle of hoses with electric cables. Parts from the U.S. EMU spacesuits can also be used in the Orlan-M, e.g. the headlamps and drinking water supply.

Orlan-M technical data

The Orlan-M is a spacesuit of the semi-rigid type, with a hard aluminium-alloy torso (cuirass) and arms and legs made of a softer material. It is an improved version of the previous spacesuit, the Orlan-DMA, taking into account the operational experiences of those using this spacesuit. It is strictly for zero-gravity use; its current design could not be used on the Moon or Mars as it is too heavy.

  • The Orlan-M can accommodate a greater range of anthropometric sizes: 165 cm to 190 cm height (instead of 185 cm for the DMA) and up to 112 cm for chest diameter (instead of 108 cm). The Orlan can be adjusted to fit different wearers by lengthening or tightening straps in the arms, legs and torso (as shown in the diagram below). Maximum chest diameter is 112 cm; maximum height is 190 cm. The arms can also be removed and replaced with new ones if damaged (e.g. by a meteorite or space debris puncture).
  • Radio communications have been modified so that two cosmonauts can speak and listen to each other simultaneously (which they couldn’t in the previous Orlan version).
  • The metallic cuirass (the suit’s hard aluminium-alloy torso) is increased in size as are the arm and leg openings for the greater range of wearers’ heights. On the cuirass are fixtures for attachment of the USK, Cosmonaut Self-Rescue Device (УСК).
  • An additional visor enhances the upper field of view and helps prevent the original one from misting up.
  • A variable-length safety tether widens the cosmonaut’s area of operation.
  • Improvements were also made in the ankle and pressure bearings; mobility and strength of the pressure gloves; a more reliable wrist pressure disconnect; back-up pump; snap hook for the safety tethers; fan, radio set, and the absorption capacity of the CO2 cartridge.
  • The Orlan can be used in both the Pirs and U.S. Quest airlocks (the U.S. EMU can only be used in Quest).
  • Some American EMU equipment, such as a 350 ml drink bag, side headlights and “Pampers” urine-absorbing garment, can also be worn.
  • From a webpage at the Made in Russia site:

    Scientists pay special attention to ensuring the durability of spacesuits. A tiny particle of one tenth of one millimeter flying in outer space at 20 kilometers a second or so can break the spacesuit. Tests carried out on the Earth have proved this. In special devices tiny particles were accelerated at several kilometers an hour and were directed on a fragment of the fabric used for making the spacesuits. Particles of half millimeter in diameter broke through all the layers of the fabric easily. Though arrows of that size are unlikely to hit the cosmonaut’s spacesuit the designers have taken into account such a possibility. If the spacesuit is damaged, a special system is switched on and will maintain the required pressure inside the spacesuit during 30 to 50 minutes, depending on the size of the hole. This will make it possible for the cosmonaut to return to the station.

The Orlan operates at a pressure of 0.4 atmospheres (EMU at 0.3 atm.), enabling a pre-breathe time of only 30 minutes (in the EMU pre-breathe is 12 hours in the Joint Airlock, or 4 hours in the EMU itself). The drawback is that the higher pressure means that the Orlan is somewhat more difficult to move in.

Before climbing into the Orlan, the wearer first dons long white underwear, then the blue-colored cooling garment, which is interlaced with cooling tubes through which water flows.

The Orlan is easily donned; the user floats into it via the backpack, whose door swings open like a refrigerator’s. All essential equipment in the backpack – hermetically-sealed shell, fans, water pumps, pressure regulators, oxygen cylinder, radio, etc. – has backups/duplicates. (NASA considers its EMU’s systems completely reliable, so they are not duplicated.)

The suits must be maintained and repaired in orbit by the on-board crew with special tools; they are not returned to Earth for maintenance as there is no room in the Soyuz spaceship. The Orlan has a useful life of 4 years or up to 15 EVAs, limited by its pressure bladder which is made of natural rubber (which deteriorates over time).

The suits are usually bundled into a Progress cargo ship and burn up when the ship is undocked and enters the atmosphere. Unfortunately this means that few suits worn in orbit will make it to museums, though removable parts of the suits (gloves, visors) can be souvenired and taken back to Earth.

A new scheme is to fit the suit to be discarded with amateur radio communications equipment, push it from the ISS during a spacewalk and turn it into a “SuitSat”, an orbiting Amateur Radio transmitter! The first was “launched” on 3 February 2006 by Expedition 12, to orbit for a few weeks before atmospheric drag pulled it towards Earth.

During Expedition 14’s stay in 2006, Suit №26 developed a leak and spare parts arrived on Progress M-58: two new arms that were attached by Mikhail Tyurin on 14 November (see photo ISS014-E-07859.jpg). A new leg was to be brought up on M-59. This would prolong the suit’s life until December 2007 (originally set to expire in December 2006).

Mir/ISS suit Orlan-M
Official name Orlan-M spacesuit, «Орлан-М» скафандр
Description This spacesuit of the semi-rigid type was an Orlan-DMA spacesuit modification. The Orlan-M design took into account the experience of Orlan-DMA operations on Mir and the additional requirements imposed by operations on the ISS. The suit underwent the following modifications:
  • The suit’s dimensions were enlarged in the waist area and the entry hatch was moved upward.
  • An additional helmet-top window and protective glass for the main window were introduced.
  • A calf bearing and the third pressure bearing (elbow) on the suit arm were introduced.
  • One of the safety tethers was given variable length.
  • CCC capacity was increased.

Power supply, radio communication and telemetry were available for self-contained mode (from the backpack) and via the 25-m electrical umbilical from the station. Owing to the above, the service characteristics (mobility, donning/doffing, field of view, etc.) were improved. The anthropometric ranges of chest circumference and height were improved (96-112 cm and 164-190 cm, respectively). The suit was provided with attachment points for SAFER.
Utilisation (operations)
  • Mir: 1997-2000 for 18 paired EVAs
  • ISS: 2001-31 December 2002 for 9 paired EVAs
Development and operation dates Development and tests: 1995-1997. Nominal operations: 1997-up to the present
Quantity of manufactured spacesuits (as at 31 December 2002)
  • Test and training models: 17
  • Flight models: 7
Main technical characteristics of the Orlan-M spacesuit
Nominal duration of the autonomous mode 7 hours
CO2 absorption cartridge operating time (with airlock time included) 9 hours
Suit positive pressure
  • Nominal mode: 392 hPa
  • Emergency mode: 270 hPa
Oxygen available (main and back-up) 1 kg each
Cooling water available 3.6 kg
Assured heat removal
  • Average: 350 W
  • Maximum: Up to 600 W
Total consumed power by the suit systems Up to 54 W
Quantity of telemetry measured parameters 29
Spacesuit weight (wet) ~109 kg
Service life Up to 15 VKDs (EVAs) over 4 years (no return to the Earth)

(Source: Russian spacesuits.)

Orlan-M training spacesuits

Test and crew-training models derived from the Orlan-M were also developed for simulated training in Earth conditions. Models are the Orlan-V, Orlan-GN and Orlan-T.

Orlan-V
«Орлан-В»

This is used for testing in a flying laboratory that provides weightlessness for 30 seconds or so, and also for fit check work on the ground. The suit enclosure and backpack are identical to the normal suit, but there are no Life Support Systems inside the backpack; air is instead provided via a hose (with a flow rate up to 250 liters/minute−1). The suit can also be pressurized by bottles of compressed air placed inside the backpack when the hose is disconnected.

Orlan-GN
«Орлан-ГН»

The GN is used in the water immersion facility – the Hydrolaboratory, Гидролаборатории, Gidrolaboratorii – at the TsPK, Cosmonaut Training Center in Zvyozdniy Gorodok, Star City. Two Orlan-GN suits were manufactured and delivered to the NASA hydrolab at JSC to support crew training there, adapted so they could be used with NASA ground support equipment interfaces.

The suit enclosure is the same as the normal suit, but there is no outer cover. The suit does not have autonomous life support; air and cooled water are supplied via external hoses from ground sources. The backpack has a special water/air heat exchanger that cools water entering the spacesuit system and thus the air inside. An emergency air bottle inside the backpack can provide air for up to 15 minutes in case the hose is accidentally disconnected (the suit wearer activates an emergency air supply cock on the suit’s control panel). A pressure regulator on the front of the body enables the removal of air and the maintenance of positive pressure from 0-400 hPa.

A 50-meter umbilical cable attached to the suit provides air, cooling garment water, electrical power and telemetry for those monitoring the training on the “beach” (ground support station), as well as radio communications (via a communications cap, шлемофон, shlemofon, for the suit wearer). Pressure is maintained at 0.40 kgs/cm2.

Weights located on the chest (up to 30 kg), back and arm and legs (0.5 kg each) can be easily removed or added to control the wearer’s neutral buoyancy. The spacesuit itself weighs 100 kg. It can withstand up to 40 training sessions before being refurbished. After 150 sessions the suit is sent back to Zvezda for a major check and overhaul.

Orlan-T
«Орлан-Т»

The training suit is used at the Vykhod, Выход training center at TsPK in the Egress Simulator. Using this suit, cosmonauts can train in airlock procedures at ambient pressure (sea level) without having to use a pressure chamber. It is a normal spacesuit, with modified ventilation, electrical equipment control and oxygen systems. It can be pressurized via external air sources and can simulate, under ground conditions, various emergency situations such as air leakage, failure of the units, emergency system activation, etc. The spacesuited cosmonaut is suspended by an overhead wire and pulley.

Diagrams

Illustrations scanned from Russian Spacesuits:

Miscellaneous images:

Orlan-MK

A new version of the Orlan, the Orlan-MK, is to be delivered to the ISS in mid-2007. The MK will, for the first time, carry a small digital computer in a small compartment below the Portable Life Support System backpack. The previous versions carried the radio-telemetry equipment (BRTA, БРТА) in this compartment. The digital computer will process the information from various systems of the spacesuit. Also it will inform of malfunctions and display the necessary recommendations to deal with these on a new special liquid crystal display (LCD) screen on the front chest part of the spacesuit. The Orlan-MK will be able to work in two modes: with the digital computer (as the MK) or without (as the previous M version).

Source: Posting by Anik at NASAspaceflight.com (19/8/2006 in the Current plan of launches to ISS thread).

More on the Orlan-MK from Novosti Kosmonavtiki news №711:

24/06/2008/20:31 On the ISS next year crews will work in open space in the new “smart” Russian spacesuit

On the ISS, where crews are now working in open space, the complete replacement of the “Orlan-M” Russian spacesuit with the more modern “Orlan-MK” is scheduled. The first Orlan-MK will be taken into orbit at the end of this year on a Progress Russian cargo ship, and in early 2009, to the International Space Station will receive two more, Sergei Pozdnyakov – general director of the “Zvezda” Scientific and industrial enterprise, where all domestic spacesuits are manufactured – said Tuesday.

The new spacesuits will gradually replace the ISS Orlan-M at the end of their life, which have faithfully “served” several crews.

The Orlan-MK is the fifth Orlan version and the first computerized Russian spacesuit, Pozdnyakov said. In the process of donning the suit, it prompts the cosmonaut for the sequence of system checks he must follow before going out in open space and reports on the status of these systems. If there are abnormal situations – for example, increased consumption of oxygen, etc. – relevant information is displayed on the signal panel, with a warning beep and instructions on what procedure to follow.

The new “intelligent” spacesuit would avoid situations like what happened during the exit of ISS Expedition 9 in June 2004. At the very beginning of EVA activities, the TsUP Mission Control Center specialists recorded an oxygen leak in Michael Fincke’s spacesuit, and the crew was forced to return to the station. The determination of the cause of the pressure drop in the Orlan took several hours, and the EVA was postponed for a few days. Now the spacesuit itself will “communicate” with the cosmonaut as to the reason for his “malaise”.

According to Pozdnyakov, ISS Expedition 18, which will be launched into orbit in October, has already trained to operate the Orlan-MK. If a cosmonaut forgets a procedure during an EVA, a special program will help him translate into the more simple Orlan-M management regime.

The new EVA suit weighs 120 kg and has a service life of 15 EVAs within 4 years of operation. In open space it protects the cosmonaut from the low barometric pressure, ionizing radiation, solar power, and micrometeorites. The system uses a high-performance thermal method of diverting the heat emitted by man through a water cooling garment. The intensity of heat removal is manually controlled by the cosmonaut by reallocating water flows coming in the heat exchanger for cooling.

M: Модернизированни
Modernized
Modernizirovanniy
K: Компютеризированниы
Computer-aided
Kompyuterizirovanniy

Books

Russian Spacesuits by Isaak P. Abramov and Å. Ingemar Skoog, released in 2003 by Springer-Praxis books.

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Photo gallery

Orlan-M (via ESA)

Orlan spacesuit.

Vladimir Dezhurov and Frank Culbertson in Orlan cooling garments

Frank Culbertson, and Vladimir N. Dezhurov (ISS-3) wearing thermal undergarments for the Orlan. The blue cooling suit (KVO, КВО, костюм водяного охлаждения) is worn over the thermal underwear.

Parabolic flight training in Orlan spacesuit (Atlas Aerospace)

A cosmonaut floats in an Orlan-V during the weightless segment of a parabolic flight.

Orlan-GN training suits (Atlas Aerospace)

Two Orlan-GN spacesuits on their stands at the Hydrolab.

JAXA astronauts in Orlan-T spacesuits (JAXA)

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronauts trying on the Orlan-T spacesuits in the Egress Simulator.