Cultural WG webinar – Space Habitats And Habitability: Designing For Isolated And Confined Environments On Earth And In Space

Human factors and habitability design are important topics for all working and living spaces. For space exploration, they are vital. While human factors and certain habitability issues have been integrated into the design process of manned spacecraft, there is a crucial need to move from mere survivability to factors that support thriving. As of today, the risk of an incompatible vehicle or habitat design has already been identified by NASA as recognized key risk to human health and performance in space. Habitability and human factors will become even more important determinants for the design of future long-term and commercial space facilities as larger and more diverse groups occupy off-earth habitats.  The webinar will provide an overview of the evolution and advancements of designed living spaces for manned spacecrafts, as well as analogue research and simulation facilities in extreme environments on Earth.

Sandra Häuplik-Meusburger, PhD is a researcher and practicing architect in habitability design solutions for compact and extreme environments. She teaches and conducts ‘space architecture design studios’ at the department of building construction and design at the TU Wien for more than 15 years. Sandra is the academic director of the Science Academy in Lower Austria for which she developed the curriculum of a 2-year-interdisciplinary course on space research and technologies for adolescents. She is also the Academic Director of the new part-time MBA on Space Architecture that will start 2023 at the TU Wien.  She has published several scientific papers and worked on aerospace design and research projects, as PI, collaborator, manager and initiator. 

Sheryl L. Bishop, PhD is Professor Emeritus and Social Psychologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston School of Nursing. As an internationally recognized behavioral researcher in extreme environments, for the last 30 years Dr. Bishop has investigated human performance and group dynamics in teams in extreme, unusual environments, involving deep cavers, mountain climbers, desert survival groups, polar expeditioners, Antarctic winter-over groups and various simulations of isolated, confined environments for space at remote habitats. She has over 60 publications (including NASA’s Historical Series on Psychology in Space) and over 50 scholarly presentations in both the medical and psychological fields.