In human spaceflight, a life support system is a group of devices that allow a human being to survive in space. US government space agency NASA, and private spaceflight companies use the term environmental control and life support system or the acronym ECLSS when describing these systems for their human spaceflight missions. The life support system may supply air, water and food. It must also maintain the correct body temperature, an acceptable pressure on the body and deal with the body's waste products. Shielding against harmful external influences such as radiation and micro-meteorites may also be necessary. Components of the life support system are life-critical, and are designed and constructed using safety engineering techniques.
Read more about Life Support System: Human Physiological and Metabolic Needs, Atmosphere, Water, Food, Microbe Detection and Control, EVA Systems, Natural Systems
Famous quotes containing the words support system, life, support and/or system:
“I believe, as Maori people do, that children should have more adults in their lives than just their mothers and fathers. Children need more than one or two positive role models. It is in your children’s best interest that you help them cultivate a support system that extends beyond their immediate family.”
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“There’s a theory, one I find persuasive, that the quest for knowledge is, at bottom, the search for the answer to the question: “Where was I before I was born.” In the beginning was ... what? Perhaps, in the beginning, there was a curious room, a room like this one, crammed with wonders; and now the room and all it contains are forbidden you, although it was made just for you, had been prepared for you since time began, and you will spend all your life trying to remember it.”
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“Society cannot share a common communication system so long as it is split into warring factions.”
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