Postorbital discard and chain of custody: The processing of artifacts returning to Earth from the International Space Station

Walsh, Justin; Gorman, Alice; Castaño, Paola

doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2022.03.035

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 39 publications

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“…Collections of resealable bags appeared at various times, including a large one labeled "KYNAR BAG OF ZIPLOCKS" in green marker at the upper left part of the sample area beginning of context 12 (Kynar is a non-flammable plastic material that NASA prefers for resealable bags to the generic commercial off-theshelf variety because it is non-flammable; however, its resistance to heat makes it less desirable for creating custom sizes, so bags made from traditional but flammable low-density polyethylene still dominate on the ISS [48]). The Kynar bag contained varying numbers of bags within it over time; occasionally, it appeared to be empty.…”

Section: Square 05mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Sampling Quadrangle Assemblages Research Experiment (SQuARE) on the International Space Station, Report 1: Squares 03 and 05.

Walsh,

Graham,

Gorman

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Between January and March 2022, crew aboard the International Space Station (ISS) performed the first archaeological fieldwork in space, the Sampling Quadrangle Assemblages Research Experiment (SQuARE). The experiment aimed to: (1) develop a new understanding of how humans adapt to life in an environmental context for which we are not evolutionarily adapted, using evidence from the observation of material culture; (2) identify disjunctions between planned and actual usage of facilities on a space station; (3) develop and test techniques that enable archaeological research at a distance; and (4) demonstrate the relevance of social science methods and perspectives for improving life in space. In this article, we describe our methodology, which involves a creative re-imagining of a long-standing sampling practice for the characterization of a site, the shovel test pit.The ISS crew marked out six sample locations (“squares”) around the ISS and documented them through daily photography over a 60-day period. Here we present the results from two of the six squares: an equipment maintenance area, and an area near exercise equipment and the latrine. Using the photographs and an innovative webtool, we identified 5,438 instances of items, labeling them by type and function. We then performed chronological analyses to determine how the documented areas were actually used. Our results show differences between intended and actual use, with storage the most common function of the maintenance area, and personal hygiene activities most common in an undesignated area near locations for exercise and waste.

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Section: Square 05mentioning

confidence: 99%