Tricorder Tech: Artemis Away Team Field Test
Editor’s note: Right now NASA is planning the spacesuit and sensor technology needed for astronauts to operate during prolonged AwayTeam sorties to study astrogeology on the lunar surface. While the suits to be used during Artemis on the Moon will be tailored to the lunar environment, they will serve as testbeds for the more advanced technology that will be needed on Mars – and eventually other worlds. When we start to send humans to Mars, spacesuits will need to be tailored to that world. Based on lunar experience these suits also be augmented with access to all of the sensors and sample collection technologies required to search for evidence of past – and perhaps extant – life – and do so while observing planetary protection protocols. The complexity of future surface activities – and the immense distance of crews from Earth – will require much more data collection and presentation so as to allow the survey crews to make decisions in the field and adjust their activities based on what they find. We’re doing our homework on the Moon in preparation for Mars.
NASA astronaut Kate Rubins uses tongs to pick up a geologic sample while wearing the Joint AR (Joint Augmented Reality Visual Informatics System) display during an advanced technology run in the San Francisco Volcanic Field in Northern Arizona on May 21, 2024.
The suit display features include navigation, photo capture, graphical format of consumables, procedure viewing, mission control updates, and other augmented reality cues and graphics. The team successfully tested navigation displays using data from four different data streams: GPS (Global Positioning System)/IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), camera/IMU, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and static maps. Technology like this may be used for future Artemis missions to augment mission control communication and help guide crew back to the lunar lander.
Kate Rubins uses the hand controller on her wrist to display information while wearing the Joint AR (Joint Augmented Reality Visual Informatics System) display during an advanced technology run in the San Francisco Volcanic Field in Northern Arizona on May 19, 2024.
The suit display features include navigation, photo capture, graphical format of consumables, procedure viewing, mission control updates, and other augmented reality cues and graphics.
The team successfully tested navigation displays using data from four different data streams: GPS (Global Positioning System)/IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), camera/IMU, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), and static maps.
Technology like this may be used for future Artemis missions to augment mission control communication and help guide crew back to the lunar lander. Credit:
NASA ID: jsc2024e035706 NASA/Josh Valcarcel
Date Created:2024-05-19 Larger imag
NASA ID: jsc2024e036518 NASA/Josh Valcarcel Date Created:2024-05-21 larger image
Astrobiology
