The Sea of Tranquility it isn鈥檛. But for a team of US and Canadian astronauts, a lab on the ocean floor will be the next best thing.
As part of a programme to return to the moon, NASA is sending six astronauts on an 18-day mission next month to an underwater lab called Aquarius, 20 metres beneath the surface of the ocean near Key Largo, Florida.
The goal is to simulate a moon mission by exploring the reef area using an underwater version of a remotely-operated planetary rover and by conducting 鈥渕oon walks鈥� outside the lab wearing pressure suits.
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Inside the lab, the team will simulate remote surgery on a dummy patient using a live electronic link to mission control with a built-in time-lag similar to that experienced by astronauts radioing Earth from the moon.
With the help of the robotic vehicle, the team will even attempt to build a lunar base on the sea floor near the habitat. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the way we need to think for the future,鈥� says project manager Bill Todd of NASA鈥檚 Johnson Space Center. 鈥淭his isn鈥檛 a training exercise 鈥� this is training in a real-world situation, with real-world consequences.鈥�
