NASA to send crew to the seafloor to train for space
An international crew is set to embark on a 10-day mission in preparation for future deep space exploration – but, instead of going up to the skies, they’ll be heading deep beneath the sea.
The NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operation (NEEMO) 22 expedition will send crew and technicians, led by NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren, to live on a research habitat 62 feet beneath the surface starting on June 18.
At the seafloor, the crew will simulate the weightlessness of spacewalks and other concepts for the International Space Station and beyond, while also conducting marine research.
An international crew is set to embark on a 10-day mission in preparation for future deep space exploration – but, instead of going up to the skies, they’ll be heading deep beneath the sea. The NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operation (NEEMO) 22 expedition will send crew and technicians to live on a research habitat 62 feet beneath the surface starting on June 18
NEEMO 22 will have the researchers test spaceflight countermeasure equipment, tracking technology, and the effects of extreme environments on body composition and sleep.
In addition, the crew will test ESA sponsored hardware designed to evacuate a person who has been injured during a lunar spacewalk.
The mission will take place at the Florida International University’s Aquarius Reef Base 6.2 miles off the coast of Florida.
‘The close parallels of inner and outer space exploration will be clearly demonstrated during this undersea mission,’ said NEEMO Project Lead Bill Todd.
‘The daily seafloor traverses, or extravehicular activities in space jargon, are jam packed with technology and operations concept testing, as well as complex marine science.
‘In the interior of Aquarius, aquanauts and astronauts will tackle an array of experiments and human research related to long duration space travel.’
NASA often uses analogue sites on Earth to train astronauts and scientists for space missions.
NEEMO 22 will have the researchers test spaceflight countermeasure equipment, tracking technology, and the effects of extreme environments on body composition and sleep
In addition, the crew will test ESA sponsored hardware designed to evacuate a person who has been injured during a lunar spacewalk. They researchers will also conduct marine science operations during their 10-day stay
Earlier this year, for example, a small group of scientists was sent to live in a dome for eight months on the remote Hawaiian volcano, Mauna Loa.
This particular mission will be headed by NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren, who is no stranger to the conditions of space.
Lindgren recently spent 141 days on the International Space Station in Expeditions 44 and 45.
And on his first spaceflight, he conducted two space walks.
The mission will take place at the Florida International University’s Aquarius Reef Base 6.2 miles off the coast of Florida. NASA often uses analogue sites on Earth to train astronauts and scientists for space missions
WHAT HAPPENS TO THE BODY IN SPACE There is a loss of body weight and calcium. Bodily fluids are redistributed, with less in the lower extremities, and more in the upper body. Without the pulls of normal gravity, blood doesn't flow downhill, but pools in the extremities including the face, hands and feet, causing a puffy appearance. And without that downward pressure, height increases. Body mass often decreases with a loss of muscular tissue from nitrogen depletion; the veins and arteries of the legs become weaker, anaemia occurs, accompanied by a reduction in blood count. The calcium loss from bones subjected to extended microgravity takes place at 10 times the rate of an elderly person suffering from osteoporosis.
There is still much to be learned about how space effects the body.
The first results from NASA’s ground-breaking ‘Twins Study,’ which looked at the difference between astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly, found that space explorers may even experience changes at the genetic level.
While Scott Kelly lived aboard the International Space Station for 340 days, his identical twin, Mark, remained on Earth.
There is still much to be learned about how space effects the body. In a similar mission designed to assess extreme environments, a small group of scientists was sent to live in a dome for eight months on the remote Hawaiian volcano, Mauna Loa
‘The close parallels of inner and outer space exploration will be clearly demonstrated during this undersea mission,’ said NEEMO Project Lead Bill Todd.
NASA’s first set of data, released at the beginning of the year, suggests Kelly's genes changed during the 340 days on the International Space Station – but no one is exactly sure why.
Scientists reported their preliminary results at a meeting for NASA's Human Research Program on January 26, according to Nature.
Researchers have also expressed concerns that we still don’t know enough about how the conditions of space will affect human reproduction – especially as space agencies look toward deep space travel, and the establishment of colonies on other worlds.
During a recent panel discussion, a George Washington University assistant professor explained that sex in space, and the babies that could be produced by it, is a ‘crucial issue that we have to address,’ yet so far remains poorly understood.
‘The daily seafloor traverses, or extravehicular activities in space jargon, are jam packed with technology and operations concept testing, as well as complex marine science,' said project lead Bill Todd