UFO Space Suit question

Where is the air supply for the space suits used in UFO (and also
Doppelganger)?

I was watching "The Dalotek Affair" and was struck be the fact that
there are no backpacks on any of the space suits worn by wither SHADO
or Dalotek personnel. There are a few mall boxes on the chest and left
shoulder, but none seem large enough to hold a bottle containing more
than a few minutes worth of air. Even considering a pure O-2 mix at 5
PSI (or even a very efficient rebreather), the suits do not appear to
have the necessary resources for long forays on the lunar surface, in
which the Dalotek crew was obviously engaged.

Was this an oversight on the part of the production crew, or is there
some technology of which I am unaware?

Teresa

[hidden email] wrote:

Well in SURVIVAL, we see that Foster's oxygen supply is taken
from a (very) small pack on his right side. The Alien cuts the
connection to this pack to insert a new supply when it begins
to run out. Foster appears to survive many hours before his
oxygen runs low.

> Was this an oversight on the part of the production crew, or is there
> some technology of which I am unaware?
>


It IS totally implausible obviously, but then .. firstly this
*i*s science fiction where a bit of dramatic licence is allowed,
and secondly, it's set ten years in the future, when it's nice
to imagine implausible things turning into reality!

James

Could be LOX (liquefied O2).

5 PSI? Aren't SCUBA tanks higher pressure than that? Typical HP
compressed gas cylinders are rated for up to 6000 PSIG. 2"
diameter x 12" long holds about 54 litres at 1800 PSIG (Someone
else will have to figure out how long that volume of gas would
last) and weighs 3.5 pounds.

Paul

----- Original Message -----
From: <[hidden email]>
To: <[hidden email]>
Sent: Tuesday, January 23, 2001 1:25 PM
Subject: [SHADO] UFO Space Suit question


| Where is the air supply for the space suits used in UFO (and
also
| Doppelganger)?
|
| I was watching "The Dalotek Affair" and was struck be the fact
that
| there are no backpacks on any of the space suits worn by wither
SHADO
| or Dalotek personnel. There are a few mall boxes on the chest
and left
| shoulder, but none seem large enough to hold a bottle containing
more
| than a few minutes worth of air. Even considering a pure O-2 mix
at 5
| PSI (or even a very efficient rebreather), the suits do not
appear to
| have the necessary resources for long forays on the lunar
surface, in
| which the Dalotek crew was obviously engaged.
|
| Was this an oversight on the part of the production crew, or is
there
| some technology of which I am unaware?
|
| Teresa

--- In [hidden email], James Gibbon <james.gibbon@v...> wrote:
>
> It IS totally implausible obviously, but then .. firstly this
> *i*s science fiction where a bit of dramatic licence is allowed,
> and secondly, it's set ten years in the future, when it's nice
> to imagine implausible things turning into reality!

Oh for sure! I would never let it get in the way of enjoying a good
episode BTW.

Just more evidence though, that Space:1999 and UFO are *not* of the
same universe. Their suits had backpacks. (and I won't even go into
that glaring problem with the helmets on *those*)

--- In [hidden email], "Paul Bowers" <pbowers@p...> wrote:
> Could be LOX (liquefied O2).

Sounds possible, given a good compact chiller/heater system for
storage and recovery.

>
> 5 PSI? Aren't SCUBA tanks higher pressure than that? Typical HP
> compressed gas cylinders are rated for up to 6000 PSIG. 2"
> diameter x 12" long holds about 54 litres at 1800 PSIG (Someone
> else will have to figure out how long that volume of gas would
> last) and weighs 3.5 pounds.

Actually, I meant 5 PSI as the *suit* pressure (as was used in the US
Gemini and Apollo spacesuits). Now figure 54L 1800 PSIG of pure oxygen
regulated to 5 PSI suit pressure and breathed off at that pressure.
Anyone care to venture a guess? I'll try do do some figuring after
work.

By comparison, my SCUBA tanks are 80 cu. ft. aluminum, rated at 3000
PSIG. The difference is that I breathe off the air at anywhere from 1
to 4 atm depending upon my depth. I can stay down approx an hour & 1/2
in shallow water (~20 ft) using about 1500-2000 PSIG of the air in the
tank (depending on exertion). But my tanks are huge, as compared to
me. With a tank on my back I cannot sit down because the tank is
significantly longer than my torso (I'm 5'2"). But I digress.....

Happy Figuring,
Teresa

[hidden email] wrote:
Me too. Neither would I let a good episode get in the way
of nitpicking about the improbable details ;)

"Paul Bowers" wrote:
> Could be LOX (liquefied O2).
>
> 5 PSI? Aren't SCUBA tanks higher pressure than that? Typical HP
> compressed gas cylinders are rated for up to 6000 PSIG. 2"
> diameter x 12" long holds about 54 litres at 1800 PSIG (Someone
> else will have to figure out how long that volume of gas would
> last) and weighs 3.5 pounds.
>

I'm sure someone will .. and I bet I know who .. :)

Theresa replied:

| Actually, I meant 5 PSI as the *suit* pressure (as was used in
the US
| Gemini and Apollo spacesuits). Now figure 54L 1800 PSIG of pure
oxygen
| regulated to 5 PSI suit pressure and breathed off at that
pressure.
| Anyone care to venture a guess? I'll try do do some figuring
after
| work.


My misunderstanding. D'oh!


| By comparison, my SCUBA tanks are 80 cu. ft. aluminum, rated at
3000
| PSIG. The difference is that I breathe off the air at anywhere
from 1
| to 4 atm depending upon my depth. I can stay down approx an hour
& 1/2
| in shallow water (~20 ft) using about 1500-2000 PSIG of the air
in the
| tank (depending on exertion). But my tanks are huge, as compared
to
| me. With a tank on my back I cannot sit down because the tank is
| significantly longer than my torso (I'm 5'2"). But I
digress.....


Uh-oh, there's only 1.9 FT^3 (0.44 litres water volume) in one of
those minitanks I described and 1 litre of liquid oxygen provides
~30.4 SCF of gas when vaporized.

I probably flubbed a calc along the way and I think I feel a math
headache coming along ...

Paul

Teresa wrote:

Very good question! In reality, possibly an oversight, but I
think it was more likely a matter of cinematographic style.
Most (although definitely not all) of SHADO's hardware looks..
well.. sleek (even by today's sci-fi standards).
There's at least one other possibility:
We know that in those 26 episodes, SHADO *never* captured a UFO
- it was almost always Straker's priority. However.. We *do*
know that SHADO captured several Aliens (some alive.. for a while..),
complete with their (liquid-breathing) suits. Maybe, SHADO
used/adapted some of that technology, in it's (ie SHADO's) early days?
(and I know a few doctors who may have been able to do it; (Jackson and
Schroeder, for a start!)

BFN
--
Rob

Rob Hemmings <[hidden email]> wrote:-
> ... However.. We *do*
> know that SHADO captured several Aliens (some alive.. for a while..),
> complete with their (liquid-breathing) suits. Maybe, SHADO
> used/adapted some of that technology, in it's (ie SHADO's) early days? ...

Air-breathing or liquid-breathing, the oxygen used by the spaceman must be
replaced from somewhere. Some UFO alien spacesuits do have a life-
support backpack.