Conference Paper

Habitability Studies and Full Scale Simulation Research: Preliminary themes following HISEAS mission IV

Authors:
To read the full-text of this research, you can request a copy directly from the authors.

Abstract

Synthesis The 'Hawai'i Space Exploration Analog and Simulation' (HI-SEAS) is a long duration Mars exploration analogue study run by the University of Hawaii at Manoa, funded by NASA. The first mission started in 2013. HI-SEAS mission IV included six crew-members, three male and three female. The mission began on 28 August 2015 and was scheduled to run for a year. HI-SEAS V began on January 19th, 2017 and is scheduled for 8 months. Research conducted during the missions includes research into food preparation and preferences, behavior, crew dynamics, group performance and other relevant issues for future missions to Mars and beyond, as well as our study on habitability. This paper introduces the continuing 'HI-SEAS Habitability Study', which systematically investigates the relationship between the built environment (habitat) and its inhabitants. The term habitability describes the physical suitability and subjective value of a built habitat for its inhabitants within a specific environment. Along with human factors, habitability is critical for the design of an inhabited confined and isolated environment and thus the well-being of the inhabitants. The study uses a mix of methodologies for data collection, including monthly questionnaires during the mission and post mission interviews. This paper introduces the topic of full scale simulation research and its relevance for habitability studies. Further, selected topics that emerged during the HI-SEAS mission IV are discussed in more detail. It is noteworthy that each isolated and confined environment (ICE) has its own limitations and strengths as an analogue environment for the development of future habitats. Therefore, this paper puts its findings into context with other relevant research in that field.

No full-text available

Request Full-text Paper PDF

To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the authors.

... Particularly analog bases that are or have been occupied for extended periods of time can give valuable insights (some useful recommendations were summarized in Refs. [23]); for example, former HI-SEAS crews have rated the high ceiling habitat positively [24], while crews inside the cramped Aquarius base felt visibly uncomfortable sharing a tiny table serving too many purposes at once [24]. ...
... Particularly analog bases that are or have been occupied for extended periods of time can give valuable insights (some useful recommendations were summarized in Refs. [23]); for example, former HI-SEAS crews have rated the high ceiling habitat positively [24], while crews inside the cramped Aquarius base felt visibly uncomfortable sharing a tiny table serving too many purposes at once [24]. ...
... Generally, work modules shall have two stories, while leisure modules shall have one single story with a high ceiling similar to the HI-SEAS habitat [24]. The high ceiling will help the crew combat the feeling of confinement. ...
Article
Full-text available
Habitats must enable astronauts to survive in an extraterrestrial environment, but the challenge is not only a technological one: architecture and engineering should be brought together to create an environment in which a crew can perform optimally. With missions to Mars in mind, crew mental health becomes a design driver equally important to the support of physiological functions. We here suggest a habitat concept, MaMBA (short for Moon and Mars Base Analog), which combines the two requirements. In its basic configuration, MaMBA consists of six upright cylindrical, hard-shell pressure vessels as main modules and two airlocks, which are all connected with inflatable corridor modules. We present the current state of the design and particularly focus on the laboratory module, of which we have constructed a mock-up equipped with scientific instrumentation. In the long-term, we plan to develop this laboratory module into a functional prototype including subsystems such as the life support system. Eventually, we aim to create a habitat which can serve as a test platform (for technologies, operations, and procedures) and whose usability is continually validated through iterative testing with human inhabitants. The habitat is open to international partners for simulations.
... Interestingly, a habitability survey including questions regarding the acceptability of the habitat was conducted during missions 1-5, with a live feed from cameras added for NEEMO 5 (cf. Häuplik-Meusburger et al. 2017). ...
Chapter
This chapter continues the detailing of important milestones of the journey that lead to increasing the fidelity of habitability studies to eventually allow us to design the best-fit extraterrestrial habitats. Whereas Chap. 4 covered Mockups and Simulated Environments, this chapter gives an overview of exemplar in-situ (located in actual extreme environments) habitats and their associated research that have contributed to studies of extraterrestrial habitability and human factors. For each exemplar habitat, the physical and social settings, as well as mission relevant details, are summarized. Images and schematic plans illustrate the facility layout. For readability and comparability reasons plans have been color coded according to primary human activities. Both short and long duration contributions to knowledge are briefly discussed to emphasize how habitability has slowly emerged as a central focus in the research on human adaptation and wellbeing in extraterrestrial living spaces. The chapter is similarly structured in alignment with the current NASA Technological Readiness Levels. Short guest contributions by astronauts and simulation crewmembers complement the information.
... As already described in [37], the noise insulation of the crew quarters at the HI-SEAS habitat was not adequate (see fig. 7). Many crew members spent a significant amount of time in their private quarters during the day, either for focused work or for simply spending time alone. ...
Article
Full-text available
Analog environments for simulating aspects of spaceflight are being utilized for studying the psychological effects of the projected journey to Mars. In 2016, a series of three analog missions concluded at the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) facility. Three crews, each with six volunteers per mission, completed consecutive missions of increasing duration, simulating the isolation and confinement of a Mars exploration mission. The durations of the analog missions were 4 months, 8 months, and 12 months, respectively. In this paper, former crew members of these three missions compare how each crew organized their schedules with regard to work routines and social activities. We outline group-living habits that evolved similarly in the independent crews, and we discuss where social norms differed, leading to idiosyncratic policies for group-living during each mission. This information may serve as a reference to mission planners of both simulated and actual human spaceflight missions and also offers insights for psychology researchers that could motivate future studies of team cohesion and performance.
... Fieldwork in hostile environments offers an important opportunity to build experience in terms of protocols, workflows, instrumental performance, and problem-solving techniques, all of which will enrich our knowledge and help to improve the design, operation, scientific analysis, and outcome of future missions (Snook and Mendell, 2004;Cannon et al., 2007;Groemer, 2014;Losiak et al., 2014aLosiak et al., , 2014b. Several simulated missions have been developed in the past decade, such as the NASA DESERT-RATS (Abercromby et al., 2013), the NASA HI-SEAS (Binsted et al., 2013;Binsted et al., 2015;Häuplik-Meusburger et al., 2017), the ESA CAVES (Bessone et al., 2015), MOON-WALK (Imhof et al., 2015;Vögele, 2016) AMADEE is a research program handled by the Ö sterreichisches Weltraum Forum (OeWF) and is scheduled between 2018 and 2028. AMADEE-18 (Groemer, 2018;Gruber et al., 2019) follows the OeWF's PolAres program, which included 11 missions simulating the conditions of the Red Planet. ...
... Fieldwork in hostile environments offers an important opportunity to build experience in terms of protocols, workflows, instrumental performance, and problem-solving techniques, all of which will enrich our knowledge and help to improve the design, operation, scientific analysis, and outcome of future missions (Snook and Mendell, 2004;Cannon et al., 2007;Groemer, 2014;Losiak et al., 2014aLosiak et al., , 2014b. Several simulated missions have been developed in the past decade, such as the NASA DESERT-RATS (Abercromby et al., 2013), the NASA HI-SEAS (Binsted et al., 2013;Binsted et al., 2015;Häuplik-Meusburger et al., 2017), the ESA CAVES (Bessone et al., 2015), MOON-WALK (Imhof et al., 2015;Vögele, 2016), MARS-500 (Poláčková Š olcová et al., 2016), and others (West et al., 2010;Steele et al., 2011). Recent analog field campaigns include MARS 160 (Knightly et al., 2018), BASALT (Beaton et al., 2018), PANGEA (Sauro et al., 2018;ESA, 2019), FELDSPAR (Stockton et al., 2017), CANMARS (Caudill et al., 2019;Osinski et al., 2019), and D-MARS (Rubinstein et al., 2019). ...
Article
Terrestrial simulations for crewed missions are critically important for testing technologies and improving methods and procedures for future robotic and human planetary exploration. In February 2018, AMADEE-18 simulated a mission to Mars in the Dhofar region of Oman. During the mission, a field crew coordinated by the Österreichisches Weltraum Forum (OeWF) accomplished several experiments in the fields of astrobiology, space physiology and medicine, geology, and geophysics. Within the scientific payload of AMADEE-18, ScanMars provided geophysical radar imaging of the subsurface at the simulated landing site and was operated by analog astronauts wearing spacesuits during extra-vehicular activities. The analog astronauts were trained to operate a ground-penetrating radar instrument that transmits and then collects radio waves carrying information about the geological setting of the first few meters of the subsurface. The data presented in this work show signal returns from structures down to 4 m depth, associated with the geology of the investigated rocks. Integrating radar data and the analog astronauts' observations of the geology at the surface, it was possible to identify the contact between shallow sediments and bedrock, the local occurrence of conductive soils, and the presence of pebbly materials in the shallow subsurface, which together describe the geology of recent loose sediments overlying an older deformed bedrock. The results obtained by ScanMars confirm that subsurface radar sounding at martian landing sites is key for the geological characterization at shallow depths. The geologic model of the subsurface can be used as the basis for reconstructing palaeoenvironments and paleo-habitats, thus assisting scientific investigations looking for traces of present or past life on the Red Planet.
... Notably, a representative metasearch using the Google-Scholar database on the number of publications focusing on the keyword "Mars analog research" yields an increase from 611 results in 1997, to 1,890 in 2007, to 3,150 in 2017 (similar increases were also observed on bibliographic databases NASA ADS and Pubmed), indicating the emergence of a new scientific field. Some examples of past analog campaigns include the NASA DESERT-RATS field campaigns conducted between 1997 and 2010 (Abercromby et al., 2013), the MOONWALK project (Imhof et al., 2015(Imhof et al., , 2017, the ESA CAVES missions (Bessone et al., 2015), the NASA HI-SEAS long-duration missions (Häuplik-Meusburger et al., 2017), an initiative by the UK Centre for Astrobiology: the subsurface analog research MINAR (Payler et al., 2017), ESA PANGEA (Bessone et al., 2018), the NASA BASALT campaigns (Lim et al., 2019), or numerous stand-alone expeditions studying highly specific astrobiological questions (e.g., Schulze-Makuch et al., 2018) and others. Notably, in 2011, the European Space Agency (ESA) created a topical team to investigate recent analog activities (Martins et al., 2017) by using the Earth as a tool for studying astrobiology, and to formulate inputs and scientific needs for the improvement of ground-based astrobiological research. ...
Article
Full-text available
Mars and Moon analog field missions are established tools to investigate the potential of instruments, workflows, materials, and human factors for characterizing the astrobiological potential and geoscientific context of planetary surfaces. Historically, there is a broad spectrum on both the scientific focus and the performance parameters for analog missions. This applies specifically where performance parameters of coordinated deployment of mission assets (e.g., rovers, human crewmembers, or scientific instruments) are studied. We argue that scientific priorities and workflows shall be consolidated at an early planning stage of deep space missions such as during phase-0 or phase-A studies, while they can still impact the mission architecture design process. It is to be expected that a human-robotic mission to Mars or the Moon will include multiple field assets such as human explorers, robotic vehicles including aerial reconnaissance, mobility assets, habitat modules, stationary instruments, and engineering elements for power, communication, and in-situ resource utilization. These require more complex asset coordination compared to single-rover planetary missions. Therefore, we advocate an “Exploration Cascade,” which helps to manage these multiple assets to optimize the scientific return of planetary surface missions, to search for extinct and/or extant traces of life, and to characterize the geoscientific context of the sites of interest.
... While the first challenge of crop processing requires new technologies for growing food, cultivating agriculture in water scarcity, generating power, etc., the second challenge of food preparation is often under-emphasized. The human act of preparing food (i.e., cooking) is essential to our emotional and social well-being, and the social aspects of food preparation and meals have been shown to have a positive effect on team bonding and morale in longduration missions in analog simulations (e.g., Binsted et al., 2008;Häuplik-Meusburger et al., 2017). Taking into account these food design challenges, interaction with food in space explorations has multiple "parts" that we the HCI community can design for, building on prior work on food production, sustainable practices (Choi and Blevis, 2010), and waste management (Ganglbauer et al., 2013). ...
Article
Full-text available
Given the increasing possibilities of short- and long-term space travel to the Moon and Mars, it is essential not only to design nutritious foods but also to make eating an enjoyable experience. To date, though, most research on space food design has emphasized the functional and nutritional aspects of food, and there are no systematic studies that focus on the human experience of eating in space. It is known, however, that food has a multi-dimensional and multisensorial role in societies and that sensory, hedonic, and social features of eating and food design should not be underestimated. Here, we present how research in the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) can provide a user-centered design approach to co-create innovative ideas around the future of food and eating in space, balancing functional and experiential factors. Based on our research and inspired by advances in human-food interaction design, we have developed three design concepts that integrate and tackle the functional, sensorial, emotional, social, and environmental/ atmospheric aspects of “eating experiences in space”. We can particularly capitalize on recent technological advances around digital fabrication, 3D food printing technology, and virtual and augmented reality to enable the design and integration of multisensory eating experiences. We also highlight that in future space travel, the target users will diversify. In relation to such future users, we need to consider not only astronauts (current users, paid to do the job) but also paying customers (non-astronauts) who will be able to book a space holiday to the Moon or Mars. To create the right conditions for space travel and satisfy those users, we need to innovate beyond the initial excitement of designing an “eating like an astronaut” experience. To do so we can draw upon prior HCI research in human-food interaction design and build on insights from food science and multisensory research, particularly research that has shown that the environments in which we eat and drink, and their multisensory components, can be crucial for an enjoyable food experience.
Article
Full-text available
This research aims to understand the factors that contribute to the quality of life within isolated, confined, extreme (ICE) environments by investigating the architectural elements that affect an individual’s spatial perception, their manifestation in ICE environments, and how spatial confinement and isolation contribute to changes in an individual’s perception of spaciousness. The researchers performed an in-depth examination on three different habitats, designed to simulate life in ICE environments, to identify which architectural elements were important contributors to positive and negative changes in spaciousness. For further explorations, fourteen design professionals were asked to evaluate these habitats using the Spaciousness and Crampedness Scale (SCS) and measuring the relative estimation in error of habitats’ areas. Afterward, the evaluations were compared with the examinations. The results indicate that the environment’s geometry, lighting, color, and texture significantly contribute to perceived spaciousness when evaluated through qualitative and quantitative methods.
Conference Paper
The social, psychological and spatial significance of living in an extraterrestrial environment places unique demands on the living spaces to support human habitation in such environments. One of the critical requirements for successfully living and working in such environments-and thus mission success-is to fully address the dependency on the habitat, its technological capability as well as the capacity to counteract the stresses of a closed loop, extreme environment. Historically, such habitats have lacked all but the merest attention to such details with a focus primarily on surviving rather than thriving. This is changing and the built environment is slowly becoming an important factor to ensure both physical and psychological wellbeing. The authors have explored various concepts of the term Habitability for isolated, confined, extreme (ICE) environments from the perspectives of the inhabitants as well as the planners and social sciences. In their upcoming new book, they reviewed an exemplar selection of ICE habitats from the earliest exploratory missions, to the first mockups and simulated habitats, and to terrestrial in-situ facilities as well as human operated space habitats (Häuplik-Meusburger and Bishop, 2021). This paper summarizes the historical emergent process of development and integration of habitability issues into the design of terrestrial and extratererestiral ICE facilties. Using exemplars from in-situ facilities in both terrestrial and extraterrestrial environments, this paper highlights various current and future concepts of 'habitability' and their translation into design appropriate for future design consideration for extraterrestrial habitats. Nomenclature EE = Extreme Environment EVA = Extra Vehicular Activity ICE = Isolated, Confined, and Extreme [Environment] ISS = International Space Station
Article
Badania nad analogowymi habitatami umożliwiają osiągnięcie w przyszłości funkcjonującego w pełni samodzielnie środowiska, które z pewnością pozytywnie wpłynie zarówno na eksplorację kosmosu, jak i na komfort życia na Ziemi, zgodnie z założeniami zrównoważonego oraz odpowiedzialnego rozwoju. Rozwiązania umożliwiające osiągnięcie tego celu to: gospodarka o obiegu zamkniętym, wykorzystywanie surowców dostępnych na miejscu, potrzeba monitorowania wszystkich zasobów, łączenie architektury, natury i technologii w sposób spójny oraz harmonijny itp. Artykuł dotyczy przeprowadzonych badań i opracowanej koncepcji analogowego habitatu kosmicznego, wykonanych w ramach pracy magisterskiej (autor: inż. Wiktoria Dziaduła, promotor: prof. PŚ, Klaudiusz Fross, Politechnika Śląska, Wydział Architektury, rok akad. 2020/21). W artykule przedstawiono zakres przeprowadzonych badań dotyczących symulacyjnych placówek kosmicznych, wnioski z badań literackich i in-situ (na miejscu) oraz autorską propozycję samowystarczalnego, analogowego habitatu pod wodą, z wykorzystaniem m.in. rozwiązań ze stacji kosmicznych oraz łodzi podwodnych.
Chapter
This chapter describes an Integrated Habitability Model of psychological, physiological, sociocultural and spatial habitability considerations. The meaning of the term ‘habitability’ is fraught with differences in usage, focus, application and definition. Historically, it has evolved from ‘habitability as location’ (In astronomy and astrobiology the ‘habitable zone’ is a range of orbits around a star (e.g., our sun) within which a planetary surface can support liquid water given sufficient pressure.) to ‘habitability as living space’. In application, it is used by different professions with a variety of underlying foci. Thus, a multiplicity of concepts exists. As such, it provides challenges to systematic study as well as constructive dialogue. This chapter gives a systematic overview of the common features and differences of those concepts and argues for a robust inclusive model centered around inhabitant experience of space as a central core.
Chapter
This chapter and Chap. 5 introduce and outline important milestones of the journey that lead to increasing the fidelity of habitability studies intended to eventually allow us to design the best-fit extraterrestrial habitats. Beginning with the utilization of mockups and simulated environments in this chapter and in-situ environments in Chap. 5, an overview of exemplar habitats and their associated research that have contributed to studies of extraterrestrial habitability and human factors is presented. For each exemplar habitat, the physical and social settings, as well as mission relevant details, are summarized. Images and schematic plans illustrate the facility layout. For readability and comparability reasons plans have been color coded according to primary human activities. Both short and long duration contributions to knowledge are briefly discussed to emphasize how habitability has slowly emerged as a central focus in the research on human adaptation and wellbeing in extraterrestrial living spaces. The chapter is structured in alignment with the current NASA Technological Readiness Levels. Short guest contributions by astronauts and simulation crewmembers complement the information.
Chapter
Lava tubes exists as volcanic features not only on Earth, but even on other worlds. Lava tubes are the most practical and effective places where to install the first human bases on Mars. We review the human to Mars architectures currently being developed, subsequently we describe a context for the use of lava tubes for human habitation. The architecture for the use of in-situ resources as fuel for a return rocket, the use of a landing vehicle as the initial habitat are discussed. Also, the core landing site selection criteria are discussed, including how the access to a lava tube might change the landing approach. Additionally, the challenges to constructing a larger scale habitat for a growing population necessary to achieve a permanent base and the possible solutions are proposed. Whether lava tubes are present on the Martian surface, the shielding effect that they can provide is exceptionally advantageous in both logistical and economical terms for a planetary mission, since they do not require a huge mass load to be brought on a space mission and minimize considerably the work to be done on the dangerous Martian surface after landing—however, habitats on the surface still need to be considered where lava tubes are absent. Lava tubes can naturally protect from deadly radiations, extreme temperature variations, dust storms, and micrometeorite impacts. Thermal mining inside lava tubes is proposed as a realistic way to extract water ice from below the surface and use it for living purposes. Robots and humans should work together in order to detect and access the best lava tube close to the selected landing site. Lava tubes on Earth or the Moon can result in a great opportunity for conducting analog Martian missions.
Conference Paper
Full-text available
Human-crewed Space missions have had a renewed interest in recent years related to long-term strategies for humankind's sustainability. It involves avantgarde scientific fields and deals with the vital problems of shielding astronauts from the hostile extra-terrestrial environment as well as to provide them comfort in order to guarantee an acceptable life quality during the Space missions. Due to these peculiarities, all extra-terrestrial dwellings are characterised by high level of technologies, punctual controls and constant maintenances. Moreover, Spacecrafts are not fully considered as "buildings" despite the crews' long permanence and activities inside them. So far, the stringent conditions have required that their design and construction process must be tackled by mechanical and aerospace industries. From the perspective of long period missions, it is necessary to involve architects and building experts in order to enhance the user experience through the definition of more habitability and liveability requirements in Spacecrafts. This research wants to involve the participation of architects and building experts during the design process of a Space Vehicle-Building (SVB) by detecting a framework for Space architecture and construction Design Processes.
Article
Many space agencies have recently agreed on the Moon as the next step in human space exploration, and impressive progress is being made with regard to transportation, particularly launch and lander technologies. Meanwhile, a number of simulation habitats have been built and occupied by volunteer crews in order to study the human factors involved with life on the Moon or on Mars. The number of such habitats is ever increasing, and we believe it to be both necessary and helpful to provide an overview of what is already existing and what lessons in habitat design have already been learned from tests with human inhabitants. In this paper, we therefore review (1) the active analog habitats published in the English-speaking literature, (2) a selection of inactive, but pioneering analog habitats, and (3) a selection of research bases in extreme environments such as Antarctica that have not primarily been built for spaceflight simulations but provide interesting insights nonetheless. Specifically, we explore the architectural concepts incorporated and tested in existing habitats, technologies already implemented, and the scientific questions addressed. Our goals are twofold: (1) provide a guideline to researchers who seek a simulation facility for their research questions, and (2) advise the construction of future habitats for simulations and, ultimately, for missions to the surface of the Moon or Mars.
Article
Antarctic stations have for decades been used as research analogues of spacecraft, especially space stations such as Skylab, Mir, and the International Space Station. It is time to review this practice. True, the two environments generally share isolation, confinement, novelty, discomfort, danger, and remoteness. Assuming them to be analogues is attractive to both researchers and space agencies as an economy measure: research in space is expensive, complicated, and limited in research time, facilities, and subjects. Although research in Antarctica has some of the same problems, they are much less severe there; significant savings in effort, time, and money are possible. But analogues should not merely look similar, they should have similar effects. Is this true of Antarctica and space? Data from multi-year studies conducted in the two environments should compare both the stressful and adverse and healthful, positive effects of the two environments on human psychology in order to evaluate this question.
Book
Full-text available
As we stand poised on the verge of a new era of spaceflight, we must rethink every element, including the human dimension. This book explores some of the contributions of psychology to yesterday’s great space race, today’s orbiter and International Space Station missions and tomorrow’s journeys beyond earth’s orbit. Early missions into space were typically brief, and crews were small, often drawn from a single nation. As an intensely competitive space race has given way to international cooperation over the decades, the challenges of communicating across cultural boundaries and dealing with interpersonal conflicts have become increasingly important, requiring different coping skills and sensibilities from “their right stuff” of early astronauts. As astronauts travel to asteroids or establish a permanent colony on the Moon, with the eventual goal of reaching Mars, the duration of expeditions will increase markedly, as will the psychosocial stresses. Away from their home planet for extended times, future space farers will need to be increasing self-sufficient while they simultaneously deal with the complexities of heterogeneous, multicultural crews. Psychology of Space Exploration: Contemporary Research in Historical Perspective provides an analysis of these and other challenges facing future space explorers while at the same time presenting new empirical research on topics ranging from simulation studies of commercial spaceflights to the psychological benefits of viewing Earth from space. In addition to examining contemporary psychological research, each essay also explicitly addresses the history of the psychology of space exploration. Leading contributors to the field place the latest theories and empirical findings in historical context by examining changes in space missions over the past half century, as well as reviewing developments in psychological science during the same period. The essays are innovative in their approaches and conclusions, providing novel insights for behavioral researchers and historians alike.
Conference Paper
Full-text available
In the context of biomedical risk reduction and mitigation in future deep space missions, the need for effective behavioural and performance inflight support has been recognised as critical by psychologists, designers and mission planners alike. Growing evidence strongly suggests that habitat interiors might be expressly designed to assist the emotional, cognitive and perceptual processes associated with flexible, creative thought, stress reduction and personal emotional management. Research has shown that certain fundamentals in the fractal structure of the environment may assist our emotive and thinking processes with the most effective linkages between cognitive and emotional processes and settings characterized by fractal structuring in the 1.3 - 1.5 dimensional range. An initiative to collect efficacy data on the impact of bionomic interior design elements that can serve as an effective passive countermeasure to ICE stress as well as serve as a natural enhancement for performance and psychological functioning is being proposed in multiple analog environments. A discussion of study design, implementation requirements, measurement and application will be the focus of this presentation. Significance: Since the ability to bring nature with us into closed loop, artificial habitats is difficult, the possibility that critical features from such environments can be extracted and implemented to support performance, cognition and psychological well-being offers an exciting efficient and effective passive countermeasure with little dependence on crew compliance. The development of portable design elements will enable additional testing in other analogs to validate their effectiveness across different environments. Recommendations to inform habitat design for long-duration space missions, and to enable the implementation of countermeasures for problems related to crew behavioral health and performance are the long-term goal and address a number of identified gaps for long duration space missions.
Conference Paper
Full-text available
Nearly all habitability studies to date focus on defining what are the absolute minimum requirements to sustain human life, health (physical-only), and well-being. This inquiry asks the converse question in the negative: what will happen when a crew must give up so many of the familiar things, comforts, and personal associations that they take for granted? This essay begins with a review of minimalist humans to Mars mission concepts and their limitations. It applies the Crew Safety-Human Factors Interaction Model's criteria for Critical Habitability. The analysis presents five examples of what the Mars crewmembers must give up and leave behind. It illustrates them through classical and impressionist paintings and other images: restricted diet, constant confinement, disconnection from the natural world, no separation of work and social life, no family life, and repetitive tasks.
Conference Paper
Full-text available
This paper describes the application of aerospace design methodologies to the planning, design, and construction of space habitat analogues. These habitat designs occur along a spectrum from simple Foamcore and wood construction open to the ambient environment, to steel or composite pressure vessels for human occupancy with a hypobaric atmosphere. Success in developing and operating a mockup and simulator research program often depends upon careful code and standard research aimed at compliance to protect the health and safety of construction workers, researchers, test subjects, and visitors alike.
Article
Full-text available
In light of the renewed international interest in lunar exploration, including plans for setting up a permanent human outpost on the Moon, the need for next generation earth-based human space mission simulators has become inevitable and urgent. These simulators have been shown to be of great value for medical, physiological, psychological, biological and exobiological research, and for subsystem test and development, particularly closed-loop life support systems. The paper presents a summary of a survey of past, present and future human space mission simulators. In 2006, the Vienna based company Liquifer Systems Group (LSG) conducted an in-depth survey, for a European Space Agency (ESA) commissioned Phase-A contract involving a Design Study for a Facility for Integrated Planetary Exploration Simulation (FIPES). The survey data served as reference material for development of the FIPES architecture and, more importantly the application of the data ensured that the Systems Requirements reviewed and amended as part of the FIPES Study fully reflected the design, experience, and lessons learned from the use of such facilities. The paper addresses a hitherto unfulfilled need: a comprehensive, comparative survey of most, if not all, simulators to date. It is a condensed and updated version of the detailed ESA Technical Report produced for the FIPES Study. It presents a comparative analysis of simulator characteristics and consolidated summaries for each simulator classified into (1) site and purpose, (2) key technical data, (3) scientific and medical research functions, and (4) technology test and development functions. It is beyond the scope of this paper to provide details for all twenty-seven simulators surveyed. Therefore, the paper presents selected summaries of three sets of relatively recent simulation campaigns, one European, one American and the other Russian-International. The paper concludes with excerpts of lessons learned from these campaigns.
Article
In Disasters and Accidents in Manned Spaceflight, David Shayler examines the challenges that face all crews as they prepare and execute their missions. The book covers all aspects that make up spaceflight by a human crew - training, launch to space, survival in space and return from space - followed by a series of case histories which tell of the major incidents in each of those categories over the past 40 years. The sixth section looks at the International Space Station and how it is planned, to try and prevent, as far as possible, major incidents occuring during the lifetime of the space station, and at the difficulties facing a settlement on the Moon or Mars during the next 40 years.
Article
This field study was conducted during the last decade of an austral winter-over at Palmer Station in the Antarctic. The purpose of the study was to understand temporal patterns in physiological arousal and psychological mood over the course of the mission. The investigators were principally interested in how people adapted over time to chronic and acute stressors, and how people use and modify their built environment. Physiological and psychological data were collected several times a week, and information on behavior and the use of physical facilities was collected monthly. Physiological and psychological data were compared with social changes in the setting toward the development of a sequential model of human-environment transactional relationships. Based on the study results, guidelines for design of future isolated and confined environments (ICEs) included: plan space for items which make people feel at home, provide materials to allow people to personalize their environment, allow for flexible environments, provide areas for visual and auditory privacy, equip areas for socializing and remove them from private areas, and provide facilities for exercise and for projects involving physical activity. The study offers guidelines about patterns of adaption that could be expected in an ICE, discusses how these settings can be programmed to facilitate successful adjustment, and provides information about how to design future ICE habitats to maximize a healthy living environment.
Article
Capsule habitats make it possible for human beings to survive and function in environments that would otherwise be lethal, such as space, the ocean depths, and the polar regions. The number of people entering capsules in the course of their work or for purposes of recreation is constantly increasing. However, long-term living in such habitats imposes physical and psychological risks as well as offering opportunities and benefits. This paper reviews what is known about the environmental, social, and personality aspects of adaptation to capsules, including sources of stress, selection criteria, obstacles to and facilitators of adequate coping, changes in group interaction, the role of temporal factors, and post-mission consequences.
Article
The history of Skylab is examined with emphasis on program development from previous Apollo missions, modifications to spacecraft, onboard experiments, and flight crew training. A listing of the missions and an evaluation of results are included with a brief description of the workshop's reentry.
Space Station Crew Safety: Human Factors Model
  • Marc M Cohen
  • Maria K Junge
Cohen, Marc M., Junge, Maria K. 1984. Space Station Crew Safety: Human Factors Model. In: Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 28th Annual Meeting (vol. 28, no. 10, p. 908-912), San Antonio, Texas USA, 21-26 October 1984. Santa Monica, California, USA: Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.
Akins Faren R. 1985. LIVING ALOFT: Human Requirements for Extended Spaceflight. Libray of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data: NASA SP-483
  • Connors Mary
  • Harrison Albert
Connors Mary M., Harrison Albert A., Akins Faren R. 1985. LIVING ALOFT: Human Requirements for Extended Spaceflight. Libray of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data: NASA SP-483. http://history.nasa.gov/SP-483/contents.htm
Evidence report: Risk of incompatible vehicle/habitat design, Human Research Program, Space Human Factors and Habitability Element, National Aeronautics and7 Space Administration
NASA [Risk]. 2013. Evidence report: Risk of incompatible vehicle/habitat design, Human Research Program, Space Human Factors and Habitability Element, National Aeronautics and7 Space Administration, Houston, Texas. International Conference on Environmental Systems
Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation. Media Kit. Mission Overview
  • Hi-Seas
HI-SEAS [Media Kit] 2016. Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation. Media Kit. Mission Overview. [online] http://hi-seas.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/HISEASMediaKit_01132016.pdf