Human analog missions are activities undertaken on Earth in various environments to simulate aspects of human missions to other worlds, including the Moon, asteroids, and Mars. These remote field tests are performed in locations that are identified based on their physical similarities to the extreme space environments of a target mission. Such activities are undertaken to test hardware and operational concepts in relevant environments. Obviously no analog can simulate all aspects of a human space mission here on Earth. That is why a wide array of analog activities are necessary, each testing only a few important concepts and/or hardware elements at a time.
Analog activities
Desert Research and Technology Studies – This NASA-funded program tests hardware, such as rover prototypes, and operations concepts, like sample-collection techniques, in the Arizona desert every fall.
Pavilion Lake Research Project – This is a joint project between the Canadian Space Agency and NASA which conducts research on Pavilion Lake and others in British Columbia, Canada to explain the origin of freshwater microbialites, as well as to test operational concepts for deep space missions. While the lake is not a close physical analog to the Moon or Mars or an asteroid, the complex operations of the field team and back room in dealing with communications, power, safety, science, etc., make the project an excellent operational analog.
Arctic Mars Analog Svalbard Expedition – This NASA-funded annual expedition uses various field sites on the Svalbardarchipelago because these sites are thought to be analogous to sites on ancient Mars. These sites provide an excellent opportunity to test hardware and instruments to assist in detection and characterization of low levels of microbiota and organic and mineralogical biomarkers.
Haughton Mars Project – This project on Devon Island in the Arctic is run jointly by SETI and the Mars Society. The project utilizes the Mars-like features of the Island and the impact crater to develop and test new technologies and field operating procedures, and to study the human dynamics which result from extended contact in close quarters.
PolAres – This interdisciplinary research programme by the Austrian Space Forum has undertaken a number of Mars analog missions and has conducted a multi-national field simulation in the Sahara desert near Erfoud in Morocco in February 2013.
Project Moonwalk – This project is funded by the European Commission under the “space activity” theme of the 7th Framework Programme is to develop and test technologies for astronaut-robot cooperation applied to Extra-Vehicular Activities on planetary surfaces and training procedures for future human missions to Moon and Mars.
Cooperative Adventure for Valuing and Exercising human behaviour and performance Skills, is a European Space Agency astronaut training course in which international astronauts train in a space-analogue cave environment.
Desert Mars Analog Ramon Station - Is an analogue mission to mars, taking place in Makhtesh Ramon located in the Israel's Negev desert. Ramon's geological features bear similarity to the soil condition of Mars's soil. In addition, the mission takes place in the crater because of its relative abundance. Several missions have been carried out since the beginning of 2018, each staffed by six Ramonauts. They have accomplished many experiments in many disciplines, including physics, soil studies, microbial studies, psychology, agriculture, water supply, and engineering. Between 15Oct-15Nov2020, the Austrian Space Forum – in cooperation with the Israel Space Agency as the host agency and D-MARS – will conduct an integrated Mars analog field mission in the Negev Desert in Israel - the AMADEE-20 Mars simulation. The expedition will be carried out in a Martian terrestrial analog and directed by a dedicated Mission Support Center in Austria. A small field crew of highly trained analog astronauts with spacesuit simulators will conduct experiments preparing for future human and robotic Mars exploration missions.
