NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, has published a horrifying photograph showing how the space agency is preparing for some quite unconventional astronaut training from within a gigantic tank of water that resembles the moon.
According to BBC Newsround, the space agency is testing some unusual circumstances in a 12-meter-deep research swimming pool.
The structure mimics the circumstances astronauts would face on the first-ever crewed visit to the lunar south pole, which will be part of the future Artemis missions.
Artemis, the space agency's renewed moon plans, would attempt to return people to our cratered satellite later this decade. They'll touch down in the South Pole, where the sun barely rises beyond the lunar peaks. It's a realm of lengthy shadows and dark surroundings.
As NASA prepares to send astronauts to the Moon’s South Pole under Artemis, divers at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) in Houston are setting the stage for future moonwalk training by simulating lunar lighting conditions.
NASA Artemis Mission Astronauts Now Has Scary Moonwalk Underwater Training
NASA is getting ready to train future lunar astronauts in these strange settings. NASA divers modeling what astronauts would endure in the South Pole were released by the Johnson Space Center this week. The training is at the agency's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston. It's a massive pool meant to mimic conditions in zero gravity.
Megan Dean, a NASA public affairs specialist, told Mashable in an email Divers in Houston's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) are duplicating lunar lighting conditions in preparation for future Moonwalk training.
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The Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory is frequently a well-lit teaching environment. However, they've made a concerted effort to produce gloom for this operation.
"This testing and evaluation involved turning off all the lights in the facility, installing black curtains on the pool walls to minimize reflections, and using a powerful underwater cinematic lamp, to get the conditions just right ahead of upcoming training for astronauts," NASA explained.
Kill the lights – we’re simulating a Moonwalk!
— NASA's Johnson Space Center (@NASA_Johnson) February 2, 2022
Divers at NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory turned off the lights to simulate what an Artemis astronaut might experience at the lunar south pole - long, dark shadows. pic.twitter.com/naslhzzix7
The water tank, for example, aids explorers in feeling the moon's gravitational pull. At the same time, the unusual lighting configuration mimics the dark conditions at the south pole, where sunlight only reaches a few degrees above the horizon.
Astronauts will learn activities like gathering samples of lunar regolith using various equipment, inspecting a lunar lander, and, of course, planting the American flag while getting adjusted to the peculiar lighting conditions within the 40-foot-deep pool.
About Artemis Mission
The Artemis III mission, which is presently scheduled for 2025, aims to land the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface. Before that, the uncrewed Artemis I mission, scheduled to launch this year, will fly around the moon to test the hardware, with Artemis II following suit with a crew.
Digital Trends said the lunar south pole is of great importance to NASA because it contains water ice, a resource that is predicted to be crucial in future crewed trips to deep space.
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