Is there a reason for the orange-rust color of the shuttle astronaut’s uniform?
I don’t care; I’m just wondering.
The orange is the “launch and entry” suit. The color is for visibility in case of a water landing:
There’s one of my least favorite euphemisms. If the shuttle ends up in the water, that’s not a “water landing”, it’s a freaking crash. The same as if the commercial aircraft I’m on ends up in the drink.
It’s a question of degree. If the plane hits the water in a controlled manner, with a reasonable minimum of immediate destruction on the plane’s behalf, it’s a landing. Same for on the ground. Planes have made belly landings, and planes have also “augered into the dirt” as my JROTC instructor used to eloquently say. Presumably it’s within the realm of possibility that a Shuttle Orbiter may find itself landing in the water in the same fashion, hitting the water at a relatively low speed and low Angle of Approach, and just skidding to a stop (before it promptly sinks like a rock, depending on how bouyant a Shuttle Orbiter may or may not be).
That said, I don’t know if most commercial airline pilots are trained for landing in the water or landing without landing gear down, I have heard plenty of accounts of pilots doing it (usually military pilots in the stories I’ve read, but then I read about military aviation more than I do civil aviation).
It’s called “ditching” and yes, we are trained for it.
Back to the OP: their uniforms are orange for the same reason your life vests on a boat are orange: visibility.
I prefer to think of it as an evil conspiracy on the parts of t.u. and their alumni. 
Of course, maroon flight suits, while they would be far sexier, would not be nearly as visible.
I prefer to think of it as an evil conspiracy on the parts of t.u. and their alumni.
Of course, maroon flight suits, while they would be far sexier, would not be nearly as visible. :rolleyes: