Michael Braukus
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1979
michael.braukus@nasa.gov
Rachel Hoover
Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
650-604-0643
rachel.hoover@nasa.gov
RELEASE: 10-179
NASA SIMULATES SPACE EXPLORATION AT REMOTE ARCTIC CRATER SITE
WASHINGTON -- NASA personnel are among a group of international
researchers who are in the Canadian Arctic assessing concepts for
future planetary exploration as part of the Haughton-Mars Project, or
HMP-2010.
Scientists are using the arid, rocky environment of the Haughton
Crater on Devon Island, Canada to simulate conditions that might be
encountered by explorers on other planetary bodies. The latest
edition of the HMP-2010 began July 19 and includes three weeks of
crew and mission control activities and robotic testing.
"Explorers, such as geologists, often find themselves with a set of
observations they would have liked to make, or samples they would
have liked to take, if only they had been able to stay longer at a
site," said Terry Fong, director of the Intelligent Robotics Group at
NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "Our work this
year is to study how remotely -operated robots, perhaps even vehicles
previously used for crew transport, can be used to perform follow-up
work."
Using robots for such follow-up work could save astronauts from
performing tedious, repetitive or time-consuming activities.
Surveying a site could take hundreds to thousands of readings using
ground-penetrating radar, spectrometers, or geotechnical instruments.
Additionally, robots could make measurements and take pictures that
complement or supplement those initially taken by humans.
Mission planners speculate that in the future, there could be
substantial amounts of time between crewed missions for robots to
perform research work at a range of destinations.
During HMP-2010, NASA will deploy robots developed by the Intelligent
Robotics Group at Ames. The robots, known as K10s, are equipped with
a variety of instruments including 3-D scanning lidar, color imagers,
spectrometers and ground-penetrating radar. The K10s will map
systematically above and below ground structures and characterize
rocks, soil and landscape of key areas at Haughton Crater.
NASA also will conduct a series of experiments designed to examine how
future surface systems, such as crew rovers, might be repositioned
robotically from one location to a new rendezvous location with
astronauts.
"Poor lighting and low resolution of satellite imagery can make a
planned route look very simple from above," said Matt Leonard, deputy
manager of the Lunar Surface Systems Project (LSS) at NASA's Johnson
Space Center in Houston. "But once we are on the ground, we can see
obstacles we couldn't before that make the route unexpectedly
challenging. We will study how to use ground robots to scout
alternative safe routes, categorize hard-to-detect obstacles and
examine how best to prepare for venturing into unknown terrain."
In addition to working around unexpected roadblocks during future
planetary convoys, the LSS experiment team will study how a robot on
a set route with a fixed schedule can conduct science tasks, such as
taking samples or gathering images. The team will work with a K10
robot and HMP's MARS-1 Humvee Rover field exploration vehicle to
simulate a large planetary crew rover equipped with science
instruments.
The activities in Canada support both the Moon and Mars Analog Mission
Activities Program in the Science Mission Directorate and the
Exploration Technology Development Program in the Exploration Systems
Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
The Haughton-Mars Project is an international, multidisciplinary field
research project focused on the scientific study of the crater and
surrounding terrain on Devon Island. The site's polar desert setting,
geological features and microbiology make the crater a good site for
moon and Mars analog studies. HMP-2010 is managed by the Mars
Institute in Moffett Field, Calif., in collaboration with the SETI
Institute in Mountain View, Calif.
For information about NASA's Exploration Analog Missions and the
Haughton Mars Project, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/analogs
