The Acoustics Office includes the NASA Acoustic Lead
(NAL) and Acoustic Working Group (AWG) Chairman with
the following roles and responsibilities:
1) The NAL is responsible for ensuring that acoustic
levels in the habitable volumes of manned space flight
vehicles are safe and habitable with respect to vehicle's
mission. This requirement includes insuring acoustic
levels are low enough to prevent temporary and permanent
hearing loss, enable effective communications, and
provide for the general comfort of the crew. Currently,
the main responsibility for the NAL and the Acoustics
Office is with the International Space Station (ISS).
2) The AWG is an advisory group comprised of the
NAL, NAL support personnel, pertinent Johnson Space
Center (JSC) organizations, and Boeing ISS acoustics
personnel. The NAL chairs the AWG and brings statuses,
acoustic specification proposals, issues, and acoustic
waivers to the AWG for recommended disposition. Evaluations
of the impacts of waivers are also addressed by the
AWG.
3) The NAL utilizes the AWG, which has JSC-wide and
Boeing representation, to advise and participate in
review of acoustic specifications, acoustic waivers,
and other acoustic matters, including providing recommendations
to the Safety Review Panel (SRP), the Program Integration
Control Board (PICB), or other ISS Program (ISSP)
Boards or Panels. The NAL also serves as the acoustics
advisor to the ISSP through participation in ISSP
Boards and Panels and uses the AWG for advice, consultation,
and integration. In areas such as GFE, payloads, Russian
Segments, and International Partners (IPs), the NAL
is the ISS delegate for oversight of acoustic compliance.
The Acoustics Office also includes personnel to support
the NAL and includes the Acoustic Lab, which is comprised
of an acoustic testing chamber and equipment for measuring
the acoustic compliance of flight hardware. The Acoustics
Office also provides expertise or oversight to those
hardware developers who require assistance in meeting
acoustic requirements.
To achieve the above objectives with regard to the
flight vehicle habitable volumes, the NAL/Acoustics
Office sets acoustic requirements for flight vehicles,
provides overview and support of flight hardware development,
provides testing capabilities through its Acoustic
Lab, ensures compliance with acoustic specifications,
dispositions acoustic waivers and exceptions through
the mechanism of the Acoustic Working Group (AWG),
and coordinates acoustic measurements during the mission
to monitor the actual mission acoustic levels. Other
services are also provided in support of the ISSP.
Some of these services include Mission Control support
to resolve acoustic problems and concerns, coordination
with the International Partners (IPs) on acoustic
issues, and support of Certificate of Flight Readiness
(COFR) and acoustic status and processes.
