EVA 23: Lessons Learned from a NASA Spacewalking Close Call

On July 16th, 2013, Italian Astronaut Luca Parmitano ventured outside the International Space Station for a routine spacewalk. When his helmet began filling with water, the following harrowing minutes became the most dangerous spacewalking incident in NASA history. NASA Engineer Chris Hansen will discuss lessons learned from the investigation that are applicable to any high-risk environment, and may very well help your organization think about safety in a very different way.

Presenter:

Mr. Hansen joined NASA at the Johnson Space Center as a Co-operative Education Student in 1991 where he worked on several projects as a structural analyst and designer. After graduating from the University of California at Irvine in 1993 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, he joined NASA full-time where he worked as a structural analyst for projects including the Shuttle Plume Impingement Flight Experiment and the Space Shuttle Lightweight Seats project. He then went on to lead early landing gear conceptual studies for the X-38 vehicle, performing conceptual design work and detailed landing dynamic analyses. In 1999, Mr. Hansen earned a Masters of Mechanical Engineering degree from Rice University. He subsequently developed a resistive exercise device for the International Space Station (ISS), led a team that developed a structural prototype for a portable, inflatable hyperbaric chamber, and developed numerous smaller pieces of hardware for the Space Shuttle Program and the ISS Program. In 2000, Mr. Hansen became the Mechanical Systems Integration Lead for the International Space Station. In this role, he led numerous anomaly resolution teams and was the NASA Chair of the Structures and Mechanisms Problem Resolution Team for ISS. 

Mr. Hansen is also a member of the Organizing Committee for the Aerospace Mechanisms Symposium, an annual meeting dedicated to sharing lessons learned in the aerospace mechanisms industry. In 2007, Mr. Hansen became the Chief Engineer for the International Space Station, leading a talented team of technical experts dedicated to flying the International Space Station safely and successfully. In mid-2013, Mr. Hansen served as the Chairman of the Mishap Investigation Board which was appointed to investigate a dangerous incident that occurred during a spacewalk on board the International Space Station when water began flooding into the astronaut's spacesuit helmet. In 2014, Mr. Hansen was named as the Chief of the Crew and Thermal Systems Division which is responsible for the design and engineering of all of NASA's spacesuits, life support systems, and man-rated thermal vacuum chambers. In 2015, he became the manager of the EVA Office, responsible for integrating all spacewalking activities for NASA. He grew up in Los Alamos, New Mexico.