Over the next two weeks ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet, NASA astronaut Drew Feustel and Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai will take part in a new NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) mission off the coast of California, USA, to assess concepts for undersea training that will aid our next steps on the Moon.

Testing new technology, tools, techniques and training programmes for space exploration starts on Earth and space agencies head to extreme environments to put their ideas into practice, simulating aspects of space.

ESA organises regular missions in caves in Italy and on the Canary Islands, while NASA has run 23 NEEMO missions off the coast of Florida, USA. Thomas participated in NEEMO 18 in 2014 and ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti was commander of this year's NEEMO sortie that took place last month.

This expedition is investigating a new concept for NEEMO with greater focus on exploration and a return to the Moon in 2024. Unlike previous NEEMO missions, the astronauts, also known as aquanauts, will not live underwater but resurface each day to stay on the island of Santa Catalina.

Submersibles and underwater suits
Thomas and Drew will test submersibles and underwater suits to judge whether the new location is suitable as a stand-in for the environment astronauts will encounter on the Moon. Thomas is assigned as submersible pilot for the mission.

The underwater world offers similar geological features to the Moon and putting ideas to the test under high workload, real-world stress, and the unexpected problems that come with field work is one of the only ways to iron out any kinks in new exploration approaches and techniques.

Thomas was chosen to take part in this feasibility study due to his background as an airline pilot and spacewalk experience on the International Space Station during his Proxima mission in 2016. He also took part in ESA's CAVES programme alongside Norishige, as well as two other NASA underwater missions, making him an ideal astronaut to assess the new programme.

"We have some really impressive technology to work with, including the underwater 'spacesuit' and submersible rover," says Thomas, "but we expect a hectic two weeks where we will be spending a lot of time underwater.

"With these analogue missions everything is made to be as realistic as possible without leaving Earth, so we will be as busy as astronauts on the Space Station, using similar operational techniques with mission control, briefings and procedures."

Support divers and ground-based personnel will monitor the tasks and guide the astronauts. Experts from ESA's astronaut centre and Japan's space agency JAXA are taking part too.

This sortie, called NEEMO NXT, will start underwater operations tomorrow and last until 28 August and is being hosted by the University of South California. Follow the mission with updates on social media with hashtag #neemoNXT.

Related Links
NASA Neemo Mission
Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com
Lunar Dreams and more

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

NASA Marshall to lead Artemis Program's human lunar lander development
Huntsville AL (SPX) Aug 19, 2019
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine was joined Friday by U.S. Representatives Mo Brooks and Robert Aderholt of Alabama and Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee at the agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, to announce the center's new role leading the agency's Human Landing System Program for its return to the Moon by 2024. "Marshall Space Flight Center is the birthplace of America's space program. It was Marshall scientists and engineers who designed, built, tested, and helped laun ... read more