Ensuring Safe Decision-Making on the Moon and Mars: Cognitive Performance Assessment for Exploration Class Mission EVA
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Steven R Anderson↗
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IMPACT 1.0—Task Impairment: A Novel Approach for Assessing Impairment during Exploration-Class Missions
Exploration-class and International Space Station (ISS) missions have significantly different levels of associated medical risk for crewmembers. The Integrated Medical Model (IMM), the probabilistic risk assessment tool used for ISS medical trade-space analyses, uses a Functional Impairment (FI) metric to determine quality time lost should a crewmember be afflicted with a medical condition. While IMM-based FI has been successful for ISS operations, it has limitations when applied to exploration-class missions. As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) looks ahead to Gateway, Artemis, and Martian missions, a novel, dynamic, and mission-appropriate impairment paradigm is necessary for accurate contingency planning. This paradigm, Task Impairment (TI), fulfills that need by utilizing mission-specific tasks. TI will allow future capability for a loss of mission metric, previously not available with IMM. TI serves as a replacement metric for FI within IMPACT, the next-generation trade-space analysis tool suite created to replace the IMM. IMPACT significantly increases the fidelity of probabilistic risk assessment for exploration-class missions. The Human Exploration of Mars Preliminary List of Crew Tasks (MTL, a source of 1100+ exploration-class mission-specific tasks for crewmembers) was used to calculate TI. Using the Task List, 18 individual Human System Categories were identified as being required to perform each task (e.g., Cardiopulmonary, Cognitive, etc.). Each of the 1200+ tasks were mapped to the Human System categories listed in the Task List. The total number of tasks in each category were tallied to determine how many tasks required each Human System. Lastly, each of the 120 medical conditions from the IMPACT condition list were mapped to the Human System categories to complete the TI calculation. NASA subject matter experts across five medical specialties established consensus for the mapping of each condition. The resulting total tasks impaired by each condition were used to calculate discrete TI values. This process was repeated for each of the four severity/resource utilization variants of each condition, and for each of the three phases of clinical care. Through this process, discrete TI values were calculated for each of the 120 IMPACT medical conditions and their variants. The Task Impairment metric provides higher fidelity, dynamic utility, and quicker analysis of medical impairment compared to the previous Functional Impairment metric used for the Integrated Medical Model. TI will be used for higher fidelity medical impairment analysis and contingency planning during Lunar, Martian, and other long-term exploration-class missions.
William L Fernandez↗
Human Exploration of Earth's Neighborhood and Mars
The presentation examines Mars landing scenarios, Earth to Moon transfers comparing direct vs. via libration points. Lunar transfer/orbit diagrams, comparison of opposition class and conjunction class missions, and artificial gravity for human exploration missions. Slides related to Mars landing scenarios include: mission scenario; direct entry landing locations; 2005 opportunity - Type 1; Earth-mars superior conjunction; Lander latitude accessibility; Low thrust - Earth return phase; SEP Earth return sequence; Missions - 200, 2007, 2009; and Mission map. Slides related to Earth to Moon transfers (direct vs. via libration points (L1, L2) include libration point missions, expeditionary vs. evolutionary, Earth-Moon L1 - gateway for lunar surface operations, and Lunar mission libration point vs. lunar orbit rendezvous (LOR). Slides related to lunar transfer/orbit diagrams include: trans-lunar trajectory from ISS parking orbit, trans-Earth trajectories, parking orbit considerations, and landing latitude restrictions. Slides related to comparison of opposition class (short-stay) and conjunction class (long-stay) missions for human exploration of Mars include: Mars mission planning, Earth-Mars orbital characteristics, delta-V variations, and Mars mission duration comparison. Slides related to artificial gravity for human exploration missions include: current configuration, NEP thruster location trades, minor axis rotation, and example load paths.
Condon, Gerald↗
Cardiovascular Countermeasures for Exploration-Class Space Flight Missions
Astronaut missions to Mars may be many years or even decades in thc future but current and planned efforts can be extrapolated to required treatments and prophylaxis for delerious efforts of prolonged space flight on the cardiovascular system. The literature of candidate countermeasures was considered in combination with unpublished plans for countermeasure implementation. The scope of cardiovascular countermeasures will be guided by assessments of the efficacy of mechanical, physiological and pharmacological approaches in protecting the cardiovascular capacities of interplanetary crewmembers. Plans for countermeasure development, evaluation and validation will exploit synergies among treatment modalities with the goal of maximizing protective effects while minimizing crew time and in-flight resource use. Protection of the cardiovascular capacity of interplanetary crewmembers will become more effective and efficient over the next few decades, but trade-offs between cost and effectiveness of efficiency are always possible if the increased level of risk can be accepted.
Charles, John B.↗
A hypersonic vehicle approach to planetary exploration
An enhanced Mars network class mission using a lifting hypersonic entry vehicle is proposed. The basic vehicle, derived from a mature hypersonic flight system called SWERVE, offers several advantages over more conventional low L/D or ballistic entry systems. The proposed vehicle has greatly improved lateral and cross range capability (e.g., it is capable of reaching the polar regions during less than optimal mission opportunities), is not limited to surface target areas of low elevation, and is less susceptible to problems caused by Martian dust storms. Further, the integrated vehicle has attractive deployment features and allows for a much improved evolutionary path to larger vehicles with greater science capability. Analysis of the vehicle is aided by the development of a Mars Hypersonic Flight Simulator from which flight trajectories are obtained. Atmospheric entry performance of the baseline vehicle is improved by a deceleration skirt and transpiration cooling system which significantly reduce TPS (Thermal Protection System) and flight battery mass. The use of the vehicle is also attractive in that the maturity of the flight systems make it cost-competitive with the development of a conventional low L/D entry system. Finally, the potential application of similar vehicles to other planetary missions is discussed.
Murbach, Marcus S.↗
Artificial Gravity as a Multi-System Countermeasure to Bed Rest Deconditioning: Pilot Study Overview
Efficient, effective, multi-system countermeasures will likely be required to protect the health, safety, and performance of crews aboard planned exploration-class space flight missions to Mars and beyond. To that end, NASA, DLR, and IMBP initiated a multi-center international project to begin systematically exploring the utility of artificial gravity (AG) as a multi-system countermeasure in ground based venues using test subjects deconditioned by bed rest. The goal of this project is to explore the efficacy of short-radius, intermittent AG as a countermeasure to bone, muscle, cardiovascular, and sensory-motor adaptations to hypogravity. This session reports the results from a pilot study commissioned to validate a standardized protocol to be used by all centers involved in the project. Subject selection criteria, medical monitoring requirements, medical care procedures, experiment control procedures, and standardized dependent measures were established jointly. Testing was performed on 15 rigorously screened male volunteers subjected to 21 days of 6deg HDT bed rest. (All provided written consent to volunteer after the nature of the study and its hazards were clearly explained to them.) Eight were treated with daily 1hr AG exposures (2.5g at the feet decreasing to 1.0g at the heart) aboard a short radius (3m) centrifuge, while the other seven served as controls. Multiple tests of multiple dependent measures were made in each of the primary physiological systems of interest during a 10 day acclimatization period prior to HDT bed rest and again during an 8 day recovery period after the bed rest period was complete. Analyses of these data (presented in other papers in this session) suggest the AG prescription had salutary effects on aspects of the bone, muscle, and cardiovascular systems, with no untoward effects on the vestibular system, the immune system, or cognitive function. Furthermore, treatment subjects were able to tolerate 153/160 centrifuge sessions over the 21 day deconditioning protocol, suggesting that tolerance was unaffected by deconditioning. These positive results set the stage for full implementation of the planned multi-center international AG project. Future work will be devoted to developing optimization techniques for AG prescriptions (likely supplemented by exercise) to provide maximum physiological protection across all systems subject to space flight deconditioning in both men and women with minimum time and/or side effects. While a continuous AG solution (rotating vehicle) would likely be more efficient, this study suggests that intermittent AG could be an effective multi-system countermeasure.
Paloski, William H.↗
The Moon as a Stepping Stone to Human Mars Missions
As we venture back to the Moon with a longer term goal of future Mars missions, lunar missions can provide an important testbed for technologies, systems and operations that directly feed forward to future Mars needs. Gateway missions can provide good in-space transportation feed forward to human Mars missions. Modest operations on the Moon such as the GER (Global Exploration Roadmap)-class missions, can provide key Mars human performance and surface mission capability development and risk reduction. A human return to the Moon can, if done correctly, serve as an excellent down payment to Mars.
Connolly, John F.↗
Developing the Foundations of an Exploration Class Medical System: Bridging the Capability Gap between LEO and Mars
NASA's overarching mission is to drive advances in science, technology, aeronautics, and space exploration to enhance knowledge, education, innovation, economic vitality, and Earth stewardship. Its Artemis Program encompasses the next steps in human space exploration, critical elements of which include the Orion vehicle and Gateway outpost in lunar orbit. Artemis is the first "exploration class" space travel system with the stated mission to establish sustainable exploration of the lunar surface and serve as a bridge to future human exploration of Mars. Success requires understanding both the commonalities and the differences between our experience to date, predominantly in Low-Earth-Orbit, and the challenges expected in long-duration exploration missions. In addition, these missions will incur significant constraints on both vehicle and human systems. To that end, NASA Exploration Medical Capability (ExMC) element clinicians, engineers, and scientists are developing the "foundation" for a fully vehicle-integrated exploration-class medical system using model-based systems engineering to trace and leverage clinical and engineering content to expand and refine the fidelity and confidence in the medical system itself.
MEDICAL SYSTEMS↗
Field Tests With Trident Drill in Bishop Tuff Help Prepare for Future Missions to Moon and Mars
We performed drilling in volcanic deposits near Bishop California using an engineering model of the Honeybee Robotics TRIDENT (The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploration of New Terrains) drill [1] a rotary percussive 1-meter class drill that is carried on the PRIME1and VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover)[2] missions that launch in 2024. A similar drilling system was planned for the proposed Icebreaker Discovery class mission to Mars [3] and the Mars Life Explorer mission recommended by the 2020 Decadal Survey of planetary science [4]. The objectives of the project were (1) to use data collected by the drill for operational purposes as a probe of subsurface material properties in formations that are analogous to those that may be encountered on planetary surfaces; (2) correlate subsurface structures with those deduced from Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR); and (3) inspect the boreholes after they were drilled to test PERISCOPE (Probe for Exploring Regolith and Ice by Subsurface Classification of Organics, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and Elements), a newly developed downhole UV fluorescence spectrometer [5].
Carol R. Stoker↗
Defining Medical Capabilities for Exploration Missions
Exploration-class missions to the moon, Mars and beyond will require a significant change in medical capability from today's low earth orbit centric paradigm. Significant increases in autonomy will be required due to differences in duration, distance and orbital mechanics. Aerospace medicine and systems engineering teams are working together within ExMC to meet these challenges. Identifying exploration medical system needs requires accounting for planned and unplanned medical care as defined in the concept of operations. In 2017, the ExMC Clinicians group identified medical capabilities to feed into the Systems Engineering process, including: determining what and how to address planned and preventive medical care; defining an Accepted Medical Condition List (AMCL) of conditions that may occur and a subset of those that can be treated effectively within the exploration environment; and listing the medical capabilities needed to treat those conditions in the AMCL. This presentation will discuss the team's approach to addressing these issues, as well as how the outputs of the clinical process impact the systems engineering effort.
Hailey, M.↗
Cardiovascular Aspects of Space Shuttle Flights: At the Heart of Three Decades of American Spaceflight Experience
The advent of the Space Shuttle era elevated cardiovascular deconditioning from a research topic in gravitational physiology to a concern with operational consequences during critical space mission phases. NASA has identified three primary cardiovascular risks associate with short-duration (less than 18 d) spaceflight: orthostatic intolerance; decreased maximal oxygen uptake; and cardiac arrhythmias. Orthostatic hypotension (OH) was observed postflight in Mercury astronauts, studied in Gemini and Apollo astronauts, and tracked as it developed in-flight during Skylab missions. A putative hypotensive episode in the pilot during an early shuttle landing, and well documented postflight hypotension in a quarter of crewmembers, catalyzed NASA's research effort to understand its mechanisms and develop countermeasures. Shuttle investigations documented the onset of OH, tested mechanistic hypotheses, and demonstrated countermeasures both simple and complex. Similarly, decreased aerobic capacity in-flight threatened both extravehicular activity and post-landing emergency egress. In one study, peak oxygen uptake and peak power were significantly decreased following flights. Other studies tested hardware and protocols for aerobic conditioning that undergird both current practice on long-duration International Space Station (ISS) missions and plans for interplanetary expeditions. Finally, several studies suggest that cardiac arrhythmias are of less concern during short-duration spaceflight than during long-duration spaceflight. Duration of the QT interval was unchanged and the frequency of premature atrial and ventricular contractions was actually shown to decrease during extravehicular activity. These investigations on short-duration Shuttle flights have paved the way for research aboard long-duration ISS missions and beyond. Efforts are already underway to study the effects of exploration class missions to asteroids and Mars.
Charles, John B.↗
PERCIVAL mission to Mars
With the downturn of the world economy, the priority of unmanned exploration of the solar system has been lowered. Instead of foregoing all missions to our neighbors in the solar system, a new philosophy of exploration mission design has evolved to insure the continued exploration of the solar system. The 'Discovery-class' design philosophy uses a low cost, limited mission, available technology spacecraft instead of the previous 'Voyager-class' design philosophy that uses a 'do-everything at any cost' spacecraft. The Percival Mission to Mars was proposed by Ares Industries as one of the new 'Discovery-class' of exploration missions. The spacecraft will be christened Percival in honor of American astronomer Percival Lowell who proposed the existence of life on Mars in the early twentieth century. The main purpose of the Percival mission to Mars is to collect and relay scientific data to Earth suitable for designing future manned and unmanned missions to Mars. The measurements and observations made by Percival will help future mission designers to choose among landing sites based on the feasibility and scientific interest of the sites. The primary measurements conducted by the Percival mission include gravity field determination, surface and atmospheric composition, sub-surface soil composition, sub-surface seismic activity, surface weather patterns, and surface imaging. These measurements will be taken from the orbiting Percival spacecraft and from surface penetrators deployed from Mars orbit. The design work for the Percival Mission to Mars was divided among four technical areas: Orbits and Propulsion System, Surface Penetrators, Gravity and Science Instruments, and Spacecraft Structure and Systems. The results for each of the technical areas is summarized and followed by a design cost analysis and recommendations for future analyses.
Reed, David W.↗
The Development and Application of Cognitive Performance Assessment for Exploration Class Mission EVAs
The objectives of our research are to: 1) Define cognitive performance requirements for future Lunar and Mars mission EVAs, 2) Characterize cognitive performance in subjects conducting simulated EVAs in analog studies, and 3) Develop and test unobtrusive EVA cognitive performance metrics. Our long-term goal is to develop exploration class cognitive performance monitoring capabilities for EVA and to provide data that can inform EVA planning for Lunar and Mars missions.
S R Anderson↗
Crew Medical Officer Training and Role of Ground Support for International Space Station (ISS) Operations
Medical systems supporting exploration-class missions to the Moon and Mars will require greater inflight medical decision-making autonomy. An understanding of current ISS training regimens for Crew Medical Officers (CMOs) as well as the role of ground support personnel in medical operations is needed to identify the starting point from which exploration medical system design must evolve in order to achieve inflight medical autonomy.
Rachel Richardson↗
Biomedical Aspects of Lunar and Mars Exploration Missions
Recent long-range planning for exploration-class missions has emphasized the need for anticipating the medical and human factors aspects of such expeditions. Missions returning Americans to the moon for stays of up to 6 months at a time will provide the opportunity to demonstrate the means to function safely and efficiently on another planet. Details of mission architectures are still under study, but a typical Mars design reference mission comprises a six-month transit from Earth to Mars, eighteen months in residence on Mars, and a six-month transit back to Earth. Physiological stresses will come from environmental factors such as prolonged exposure to radiation, weightlessness en route to Mars and then back to Earth, and low gravity and a toxic atmosphere while on Mars. Psychological stressors will include remoteness from Earth, confinement, and potential interpersonal conflicts, all complicated by circadian alterations. Medical risks including trauma must be considered. The role of such risk-modifying influences as artificial gravity and improved propulsion technologies to shorten round-trip time will also be discussed. Results of planning for assuring human health and performance will be presented.
Charles, John B.↗
Field and Lab Testing With Trident Drill to Help Prepare for Future Missions
Field work with instrumentation and technologies that are planned for flight missions is an important means to gain understanding that improves mission performance. This paper reports on results from field workin lunar analog volcanic terrain using an engineering model of the Honeybee Robotics TRIDENT (The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploration of New Terrains)drill[1]. TRIDENT is a rotary percussive 1-meter class drill that is carried on the PRIME-1and VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover)[2] missions to the moon scheduled to launch in 2024. A similar drilling system was planned for the proposed IcebreakerDiscovery class mission to Mars[3]and the Mars Life Explorer mission recommended by the 2020 Decadal Survey of planetary science[4].The field work objectives were (1) to use data collected by the drill for operational purposes as a probe of subsurface material properties in formations that are analogous to those that may be encountered on planetary surfaces; (2) to correlate subsurface structures deduced by drilling with those inferred from interpretations ofGround Penetrating Radar (GPR)data
C R Stoker↗
Identifying Cognitive Capabilities Required for Optimal Exploration EVA Performance: A Cognitive Task Analysis
BACKGROUND Extravehicular activity (EVA) is one of the most dangerous and cognitively demanding actions that astronauts can execute, and the cognitive demands associated with future exploration EVA on the Moon and Mars are expected to be higher compared to EVA currently conducted from the International Space Station (ISS). Decrements in cognitive performance present an important risk to crew safety during exploration mission class EVA. Yet there is currently insufficient characterization of the cognitive capabilities required prior to, during, and following EVA. Furthermore, it is unclear which cognitive domains are most important for conducting mission critical decisions with crew safety implications. To address this gap, we conducted a cognitive task analysis of exploration EVA to characterize the cognitive capabilities, critical safety decisions, and contributing factors (e.g., lunar communications delay) important to monitor for optimal performance in future exploration EVA. This cognitive task analysis was conducted through interviews with astronauts and subject matter experts in EVA research and operations. Interviews focused on exploration EVA and elicited feedback on the cognitive capabilities required for specific EVA tasks and subtasks. The information from this cognitive task analysis will help close the gap in our understanding of the key cognitive capabilities required for safe decision-making during exploration mission class EVA on the Moon and Mars. METHOD We used an applied cognitive task analysis method1 over the course of interviews with a total of 15 NASA astronauts and subject matter experts in EVA. Each interview was led by a scientist with expertise in cognitive neuroscience from the Behavioral Health & Performance (BHP) Laboratory at NASA Johnson Space Center. Notes were taken by a research coordinator in the BHP Laboratory and interviews were recorded on Microsoft Teams to ensure the accuracy of notetaking. In the first interview protocol, participants were asked about the specific tasks and cognitive demands associated with EVA. This provided a high-level overview of the steps involved in the major tasks conducted during exploration EVA, as well as which of the steps require the most cognitive skill. Next, participants completed a knowledge audit, which employs a set of probes designed to describe types of domain knowledge of skill and elicit appropriate examples. In the second interview protocol, completed with a separate set of subject matter experts, interviewees were asked to complete a simulated incapacitated crew rescue (ICR) scenario2, which provided specific context that allowed probing around relevant issues such as situational awareness and potential errors. Experts were then asked to identify the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) underlying each EVA task and to provide ratings on the importance and cognitive demand of each KSA. Finally, participants also described the most likely and consequential critical safety incidents related to decrements in cognitive performance during exploration EVA and assessed the impact of lunar communication delay on cognitive performance. RESULTS & DISCUSSION Interviews for this cognitive task analysis are nearly complete and results will be presented in full at IWS 2025. Results will include a summary of all expert ratings of EVA tasks and subtasks, qualitative summaries of content from each interview part, and a discussion of future directions for products addressing cognitive performance monitoring and cognitive domain mapping in exploration EVA.
S R Anderson↗
NSCOR for Evaluating Risk Factors and Biomarkers for Adaptation and Resilience to Spaceflight: Emotional Valence and Social Processes in ICC/ICE Environments
Space exploration class missions, such as a mission to Mars, will require optimization of human performance, adaptability, and resilience. This NASA Specialized Center of Research (NSCOR) utilizes the NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) framework to identify biological and behavioral markers of individual social adaptation and emotional resilience (as well as vulnerability) to spaceflight-relevant stressors such as living in extended isolation. The overarching goal of this NSCOR is to obtain novel information to help identify biomarkers of individuals who are resilient and/or adaptable to the stressors of isolated, confined, and controlled (ICC) and isolated, confined, and extreme (ICE) environments.A total of N=90 healthy adult astronaut surrogates are being studied in three spaceflight-analog environments: (1) n=40 healthy adults in the Isolation and Confinement Analog Research Unit (ICARUS), an ICC at the University of Pennsylvania, during 7-day missions, for a target total of 280 subject days; (2) n=32 healthy adult astronaut surrogates studied in NASA’s Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA), an ICC at Johnson Space Center during 45-day missions, for a target total of 2,112 subject days; and (3) n=18 healthy adults in the Alfred-Wegener-Institute’s Neumayer Station III, an ICE in Antarctica, during 14-month missions, for a target total of 7,560 subject days. Dr. Nindl’s Laboratory at the University of Pittsburgh is analyzing a priori selected protein biomarkers in blood, saliva, and urine. Complementary rodent models of exposure to early life stressors, confinement, and isolation are being evaluated at Dr. Hensch’s Laboratory to further validate the neurobehavioral and biological findings from the human studies.Given the inconsistency and varied definition of resilience/adaptation in the scientific literature, the NSCOR team developed a composite resilience/adaptation measure that reflects the most relevant outcomes to resilience/adaptation across psychosocial and neurobehavioral functions, as well as neurocognitive and spaceflight-relevant operational performance. To achieve this, group consensus was attained from subject matter experts to produce a rank-order of importance for each input variable. The final resilience/adaptation score included 36 variables that were collected across spaceflight analogs. As of 10/1/2021, the NSCOR project acquired data on n=27 subjects at ICARUS, n=16 at HERA, and n=18 at Neumayer. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed data acquisition at ICARUS and HERA.Among subjects studied to date, 99% of neural and neurobehavioral data (e.g., neuroimaging for structure and function, behavioral measures) as well as blood, saliva, and urine for biochemical assays have been acquired. For rodent models, Dr. Hensch’s laboratory has established biochemical and behavioral parameters reflecting confinement stress in social networks of mice for comparison to stress responses in the human spaceflight analog environments.Group social behaviors were measured with a Social Network Analysis (SNA) approach to define objective parameters associated with sociability and its plasticity by sex. This analytic approach may help identify a network of individuals who are more effective teammates or more likely to generate new social relationships. Data acquisition, biomarker assessment, and data quality control will continue through September 2022.
D F Dinges↗