NASA considers astronaut rescue off Cape Town
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on IOL
NASA has consulted South Africa’s National Sea Rescue Institute about a possible sea rescue of astronauts from an Orion capsule if a crewed Artemis mission is aborted after launch. Cape Town is among several possible recovery areas, according to the institute’s operations manager, Charl Maritz, quoted by IOL.
NASA has consulted the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), a South African maritime rescue organisation, about a possible operation off Cape Town if an Orion capsule makes an emergency splashdown during a future crewed Artemis mission, according to IOL.
An incident could send the capsule into the sea about eight minutes after launch from Florida. Depending on the trajectory and the timing of the emergency, the recovery zone could be up to 200 nautical miles off the South African coast. The NSRI could locate and reach the astronauts or specialist rescuers, recover them and transfer them to South African medical services if NASA or US Department of Defence teams could not respond immediately.
Charl Maritz, the NSRI’s operations manager, said distance and the organisation’s range at sea would be its main limitations. The NSRI would focus on maritime rescue, while NASA’s specialist teams would handle procedures involving the capsule and astronauts.
