The Krechet-94 (

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Кречет, meaning ''

gyrfalcon The gyrfalcon ( or ) (), the largest of the falcon species, is a bird of prey. The abbreviation gyr is also used. It breeds on Arctic coasts and tundra, and the islands of northern North America and the Eurosiberian region. It is mainly a resid ...

'') is a

space suit A space suit or spacesuit is a garment worn to keep a human alive in the harsh environment of outer space, vacuum and temperature extremes. Space suits are often worn inside spacecraft as a safety precaution in case of loss of cabin pressure, ...

model developed for lunar

excursion An excursion is a trip by a group of people, usually made for leisure, education, or physical purposes. It is often an adjunct to a longer journey or visit to a place, sometimes for other (typically work-related) purposes. Public transportatio ...

during the Soviet manned lunar program. It was designed by

NPP Zvezda JSC Research & Development Production Enterprise Zvezda, or R&D PE Zvezda (russian: Научно-производственное предприятие "Звезда", НПП Звезда, Nauchno-Proizvodstvennoye Predpriyatiye "Zvezda", NPP ...

. Development began in 1967, concurrently with the

Orlan orlan is an internationally recognized French artist. She is not tied to any one material, technology, or artistic practice. She uses sculpture, photography, performance, video, 3D, video games, augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and ro ...

suit for microgravity

spacewalks Extravehicular activity (EVA) is any activity done by an astronaut in outer space outside a spacecraft. In the absence of a breathable Earthlike atmosphere, the astronaut is completely reliant on a space suit for environmental support. EVA inc ...

. The developmental model was known simply as Krechet.

Design features

Weighing 90 kg (198 lb), the suit could operate for 10 hours before requiring a resupply of consumables, and had a total operating lifetime of 48 hours. The Krechet was the first semi-rigid space suit ever developed, with an aluminum alloy

hard upper torso A Hard Upper Torso Assembly, or HUT, is a central component of several space suits, notably Roscosmos' Orlan and NASA's Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU). The fiberglass HUT forms a rigid enclosure about the upper body of the occupant, providing ...

and soft fabric limbs. This design was later adopted by the American

EMU The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus '' Dromaius''. The emu ...

and later

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

n suits. The Krechet included waist and hip joints which were not present in the Orlan. The shoulders and wrists of the suit included

ball-bearing A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses balls to maintain the separation between the bearing races. The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and support radial and axial loads. It achieves this ...

joints, which allowed for almost 360 degree rotation. The Krechet was a rear-entry suit, meaning that

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

s would enter the suit through a hatch in the back. This entry was easier and more reliable than the use of a

zipper A zipper, zip, fly, or zip fastener, formerly known as a clasp locker, is a commonly used device for binding together two edges of fabric or other flexible material. Used in clothing (e.g. jackets and jeans), luggage and other bags, camping ...

. The hatch could then be opened by means of a lever by the right elbow. The life support backpack was incorporated into the hatch. The rear-entry hatch concept is attributed to Zvezda engineer Anatoli Stoklitskii. The suit featured a chest-mounted control and instrument panel which could fold out for use or fold flat against the chest when not needed. The suit also featured a metal "

hula hoop A hula hoop is a toy hoop that is twirled around the waist, limbs or neck. It can also be wheeled along the ground like a wheel, with careful execution. They have been used by children and adults since at least 500 BC. The modern hula hoop ...

" ring on the back, which would allow a solo cosmonaut who fell on his back to roll onto his side and use his arms and legs to stand. The suit had two snap-down visors, providing differing levels of sun protection, in addition to a clear visor. The outer visor was coated in gold for reflectivity. The suit was designed to be worn over a liquid cooling garment. The inner fabric of the suit was gray nylon canvas. The suit was insulated with waffle-textured foil. The outer layer was an off-white satin-weave fabric with orange trim. Because of constraints in shoulder and elbow mobility in the Krechet, the Soviet lunar lander featured a "finger controller" which allowed a suited pilot to operate the lander. The Krechet would have served as a microgravity suit as well as a surface suit, as the Soviet lunar lander (LK) and command module (LOK) were not designed for intravehicular crew transfer.

Specifications

*Name: Krechet-94/Krechet Spacesuit *Derived from: SKV EVA (developmental) Spacesuit *Manufacturer: NPP Zvezda *Missions: Never used *Function: Lunar extra-vehicular activity (EVA) *Operating Pressure: *Total Weight: *Primary Life Support: 10 hours (600 minutes)

Images

Image:Krechet.JPG , A suit model located at

Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics The Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics (Russian ''Музей космонавтики'', also known as the Memorial Museum of Astronautics (in English) or Memorial Museum of Space Exploration) is a museum in Moscow, Russia, dedicated to space explo ...

in Moscow. Image:Krechet space suit - Air and Space.jpg, Suit located at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

References

* http://www.myspacemuseum.com/krechet.htm * http://www.myspacemuseum.com/sotheby.htm *
Krechet
at

Encyclopedia Astronautica The ''Encyclopedia Astronautica'' is a reference web site on space travel. A comprehensive catalog of vehicles, technology, astronauts, and flights, it includes information from most countries that have had an active rocket research program, f ...

* https://web.archive.org/web/20090329002339/http://www.astronautix.com/craft/krechet.htm

External links

Photo of Krechet space suit at Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics in Moscow
{{N1-L3 Soviet and Russian spacesuits