MRA Leadership
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2 MRA Leadership President Neil Van Dyke Stowe Mountain Rescue [email protected] July 2010 MRA Member Guides NASA On Undersea Exploration Analog Vice President Mission …………………………………………………………….3 About Steve Chappell……………………………………………...4 Doug Wesson A Letter From Our New President…………………………………4 Juneau Mountain Rescue Suspension Syndrome…………………………..………………….5 [email protected] Commentary from MRA Medical Committee Chair Skeet Glatterer, M.D……………………………………………………...5 Five Colorado SAR Teams Receive Prestigious NASAR Award…6 Past President 2010 MRA Spring Conference Report……………………………..7 Charley Shimanski Book Review: Mountain Responder……………………………….8 [email protected] International Tech Rescue Symposium…………………………….8 Himalayan First: Standby Rescue Helicopters……………………..9 Don‘t Just Do Something—Stand There!.......................................10 National Search and Rescue Week Designated…………………..11 Secretary/Treasurer John Chang Cover photo by NASA. Bay Area Mountain Rescue Unit [email protected] MRA Sponsors At-Large Member Jim Frank Thanks to the corporate supporters of the MRA. Please support Santa Barbara County SAR those that generously support us! Click the logo to follow the [email protected] link! At-Large Member Dave Clarke Portland Mountain Rescue Cell: 503-784-6341 [email protected] Executive Secretary Kayley Trujillo [email protected] Corporate correspondence to: Mountain Rescue Association PO Box 880868 San Diego, CA 92168-0868 ©2010 Mountain Rescue Association All rights reserved. All content ©MRA or as otherwise noted. Permission to reprint granted to MRA units in good standing with the MRA. 3 MRA Member Guides NASA On Undersea Exploration Analog Mission Parts reprinted with permission from NASA From May 10 - 24, 2010, two astronauts, a veteran undersea engineer and an experienced scientist embarked on the 14th NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) undersea analog mission at the Aquarius undersea labora- tory. The experienced scientist was none other than Steve Chappell, current president of Rocky Mountain Rescue Group in Boulder, CO and a research scientist from Wyle Integrated Science and Engineering based in Houston,TX. Aquarius, located in an environment like the abyssal planes encountered on a Martian or lunar surface, is an undersea laboratory used during the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO). For two weeks, it was home to astronauts Chris Hadfield and Thomas Marshburn, under- sea engineer Andrew Abercromby, and scientist Steve Chappell. The base, located several miles off the coast of Key Largo, Fla., is owned by the National Oceanic and Atmos- phere Administration (NOAA) and managed by the Univer- sity of North Carolina. The goal of the mission was to experi- ence and overcome challenges in an environment that paral- lels the reduced gravity environments experienced in space. Steve outside Aquarius. Photo by NASA. The mission also included a study of autonomous crew work, According to Bill Todd, NEEMO project lead, the mission with periods of time when there was limited communication proved challenging, and successful. "The timeline, the pace between the crew and the mission control center, much like and the number of tasks were... our most complicated under- what could happen during missions to Mars or other distant sea mission by far," said Todd. "This crew (made up of astro- destinations. nauts, an engineer and a scientist) came together quickly to make it safe and successful which is really an interesting Steve‘s role on the research team was to help define and exe- point if you think about the mix of people NASA would want cute the research needed to optimize human performance to put together for a two year Martian mission." in the next-generation spacesuits and EVA systems. Thou- sands of data points were collected during the mission and are The crew conducted a series of extravehicular activities currently being analyzed to provide the evidence-based guid- (EVAs), simulating activities that astronauts would be likely ance needed to ensure the best equipment and technique to perform during missions in space. designs for future space explorers. Using near-scale mockup vehicles, EVA teams conducted off Steve said of his involvement in the mission, ―It was a -loading, retrieval and survival missions, including the trans- tremendous opportunity to work together as a team to help fer of a simulated incapacitated astronaut from the ocean NASA take the next steps to push forward the frontier of floor to the deck of a lander, all while weighing what suited space exploration. I was proud to be able to contribute my astronauts may engineering, science, and rescue skills. It was key to mission weigh while on the success to be able to mesh well together as a crew, leveraging Moon or Mars. each crewmember‘s diverse skills to achieve objectives as well as learning how to live and work together under extreme While inside the conditions. There is no doubt that my experience gained on Aquarius labora- mountain rescue missions as a member of a fully-accredited tory, the crew MRA team made me a more valuable NEEMO 14 teammate. performed life sciences experi- For more information about the NEEMO project, visit: ments focused on http://www.nasa.gov/neemo human behavior, performance and For more information about NASA analog field tests, visit: physiology. Steve guides the EVA crew from inside http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/analogs Aquarius. Photo by NASA. 4 About Steve Chappell Dr. Steve Chappell grew up in Lake Orion, MI. As a kid, he dreamt of space travel and that dream continues to drive him today. After graduating high school, he attended the University of Michigan and earned a bachelors degree in Aero- space Engineering Sciences. After graduating, he used his newly gained expertise to help design and develop aircraft and missile simulations to assist pilots with real-time combat decision making, but his desire to be a part of human spaceflight was still strong. This drove Steve to move to Colorado to further his education… and be closer to the mountains to develop his growing passion for rock climbing and mountaineering. Steve‘s intent upon returning to college was to become a medical doctor special- izing in aerospace medicine and he began taking classes to make that possible, but Portrait of Steve Chappell, NEEMO 14 member, being a climber led him to learn about Rocky Mountain Rescue based in Boulder, climbing Mt. Rainier. Photo by NASA. CO. He became a member of the all-volunteer team, which is one of the busiest in the country, and quickly became active performing technical rock, snow, and ice rescue missions. Over time, he found that his involvement on the mountain rescue team fed his interest in helping people while doing something he loved and he changed his educational course to pursue bioastronautics-related graduate degrees, studying how humans perform in the harsh environment of space. Steve earned masters and doctoral degrees from the University of Colorado, studying human performance in simulated Moon and Mars gravity. While he was performing his graduate research, he worked as one of the lead systems engineers devel- oping and launching a satellite to study cloud formation in the upper atmosphere. Also during this time, his passion for rescue led him to become the operational leader of his mountain rescue team. He‘s taken part in more than 350 rescue missions and also climbed many high peaks in Colorado and on international expeditions. Along the way, he was introduced to the wonders beneath the waves of the ocean, attaining multiple SCUBA certifications and making dives in exotic locations around the world. Steve‘s diverse background and experience led him to work for Wyle Integrated Science & Engineering at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC). He is helping to define and execute the research needed to optimize human performance in the next-generation spacesuits and EVA systems. As part of his job, he‘s led and taken part in studies in different exploration analog environments including the high arctic, parabolic flight aircraft, and partial gravity simulators at JSC. He was a major contributor to the design of the mockups and procedures to be used during NEEMO 14. Although Steve works at JSC, much of his time is spent working remotely from near Boulder. He remains active with Rocky Mountain Rescue as the team‘s current president and gets into the mountains whenever he can. Steve also enjoys running, canyoneering, reading, and painting. Neil Van Dyke was one A Letter From Our New President of the founding members I consider it a great honor to have been elected as the MRA‘s of Stowe Mountain Res- next president, and I‘m looking forward to the opportunity to cue in 1980, a 15-year serve over the next two years. MRA member team. He has served as Appala- I‘ve got some tough footsteps to follow; Charley Shimanski chian Region chair, and made great strides over the previous two years, particularly at the national level as with regard to leading us through our strategic planning work. member-at-large and The priorities identified during that process will continue to vice president. He is the be our guiding document, and with the changes to our re- owner and operator of accreditation policy that were approved in Juneau, we have the Golden Eagle Resort successfully tackled the top priority on our list. In the coming in Stowe, which has been in Neil’s family since 1963 and months my fellow officers and I will be looking at what our next priorities should be. was the host property for the 2008 MRA Spring Confer- ence. Neil is also an active member of his local commu- We have lots to do! It‘s a little overwhelming at times, but nity; he serves as vice president of the local Chamber of that‘s a good thing. I look forward to hearing your thoughts Commerce, as the town’s emergency management direc- as we move ahead on the strategic plan.