As the other major spacefaring nation, the Soviet Union is a subject of interest to the Congress in their deliberations concerning the future of U.S. space activities. In the course of an assessment of Civilian Space Stations (in 1983), the Office of Tech. Assessment (OTA) undertook a study of the presence of Soviets in space & their Salyut space stations. The major element in this technical memorandum was a workshop held at OTA in Dec. 1982: it was the first occasion when a significant number of experts in this area of Soviet space activities had met for extended unclassified discussion. As a result of the workshop, OTA prepared this report. Includes ¿Graphic Comparison of Soviet & U.S. Space Vehicles.¿ Illustrations.

Living and working in extra-terrestrial habitats means being potentially vulnerable to very harsh environmental, social, and psychological conditions. With the stringent technical specifications for launch vehicles and transport into space, a very tight framework for the creation of habitable space is set. These constraints result in a very demanding “partnership” between the habitat and the inhabitant. This book is the result of researching the interface between people, space and objects in an extra-terrestrial environment. The evaluation of extra-terrestrial habitats in comparison to the user’s perspective leads to a new framework, comparing these buildings from the viewpoint of human activity. It can be used as reference or as conceptual framework for the purpose of evaluation. It also summarizes relevant human-related design directions. The work is addressed to architects and designers as well as engineers.