WEBVTT 00:00:00.866 --> 00:00:03.536 JOSH: To explore the Universe, NASA is testing new 00:00:03.538 --> 00:00:05.838 technologies in a place you might not imagine. 00:00:05.840 --> 00:00:08.575 See how the Sea provides an immersive environment to expand 00:00:08.576 --> 00:00:12.335 the limits of Space Exploration Next... on Real World. 00:00:12.336 --> 00:00:16.688 ? [music] ? 00:00:20.581 --> 00:00:23.188 JOSH: To get set for exploration of worlds beyond 00:00:23.190 --> 00:00:26.191 our own NASA looks to places right here on earth that mimic 00:00:26.193 --> 00:00:29.161 other places in the universe where we might explore. 00:00:29.163 --> 00:00:33.165 NASA calls these Analog Tests, because these places are 00:00:33.166 --> 00:00:36.335 analogous to places like moons, other planets and asteroids. 00:00:36.336 --> 00:00:40.073 You know, when two things are analogous, they have a similar 00:00:40.075 --> 00:00:43.008 relationship. You’ve probably done word analogies in 00:00:43.010 --> 00:00:46.913 school... things like Jupiter is to Titan as Earth is to... 00:00:46.915 --> 00:00:49.381 yep, Luna... our moon. 00:00:49.383 --> 00:00:52.651 NASA looks for those same kinds of similar relationships when 00:00:52.653 --> 00:00:56.021 it does analog studies in Hawaii, where the volcanic soil 00:00:56.023 --> 00:00:59.791 is similar to the soil on the moon. NASA studies rovers and 00:00:59.793 --> 00:01:02.528 robots in the deserts of northern Arizona, where the 00:01:02.530 --> 00:01:05.331 landscape might be similar to what you would find on another 00:01:05.333 --> 00:01:08.166 planet or perhaps even a big asteroid. 00:01:08.168 --> 00:01:11.838 And NASA studies the effects of gravity in Key Largo Florida, 00:01:11.840 --> 00:01:15.141 below the surface of the gulf of Mexico. We got some help 00:01:15.143 --> 00:01:17.643 from NASA engineer and special Real World correspondent, 00:01:17.645 --> 00:01:19.845 Heather Paul, who had a fish eye’s view 00:01:19.846 --> 00:01:22.048 of the events in Key Largo. 00:01:22.050 --> 00:01:24.083 HEATHER PAUL: Thanks Josh. We’re out here in the Florida 00:01:24.085 --> 00:01:26.385 Keys and this is a really unlikely place. You don’t 00:01:26.386 --> 00:01:28.621 thing about this when you think about going to the moon or 00:01:28.623 --> 00:01:31.256 Mars. But in fact, NASA is doing underwater research right 00:01:31.258 --> 00:01:34.938 here. So let’s go find out what we’re doing... 00:01:34.940 --> 00:01:40.313 ? [music] ? 00:01:43.971 --> 00:01:46.571 BILL TODD: This is the facility where the Aquarius Habitat, 00:01:46.573 --> 00:01:49.675 which is the worlds only undersea research habitat. 00:01:49.676 --> 00:01:53.813 It’s about 5 miles off shore. And it‘s the closest thing to 00:01:53.815 --> 00:01:58.216 living in space that we can find anywhere. 00:01:58.218 --> 00:02:00.320 JOSH: Bill Todd is the mission manager for NASA’s 00:02:00.321 --> 00:02:02.721 underwater research activities. 00:02:02.723 --> 00:02:05.791 BILL: And what we do is we send crews to the habitat, astronaut 00:02:05.793 --> 00:02:09.461 research crews. We send them to the habitat. And they go 00:02:09.463 --> 00:02:11.630 and live there, to get a feeling of what it 00:02:11.631 --> 00:02:13.866 would be like to live in space. 00:02:13.868 --> 00:02:16.870 JOSH: The undersea environment simulates space exploration in 00:02:16.871 --> 00:02:20.606 several important ways. First, it provides an isolated, fully 00:02:20.608 --> 00:02:23.488 engaging setting, similar to what astronauts might encounter 00:02:23.490 --> 00:02:26.045 exploring other planets, moons, etc. 00:02:26.046 --> 00:02:29.015 In this environment, they can test various systems, like 00:02:29.016 --> 00:02:31.751 communication and life support in a realistic setting. 00:02:31.753 --> 00:02:34.953 And it has a huge advantage over simulators. 00:02:34.955 --> 00:02:37.356 BILL: We can do all types of things in simulators. In those 00:02:37.358 --> 00:02:40.560 simulations, we flip switches and we talk to the mission 00:02:40.561 --> 00:02:42.895 control center and we go through a dress rehearsal, 00:02:42.896 --> 00:02:47.100 but at 5 o’clock we go home. The day is over and we go home 00:02:47.101 --> 00:02:49.435 and back to our families, and kind of wind down from all 00:02:49.436 --> 00:02:53.071 that. It doesn’t really give you the sense, the feel for 00:02:53.073 --> 00:02:55.908 what it’s like to live in an extreme environment. 00:02:55.910 --> 00:02:59.211 Here, it’s a lot different. You stay. You do your 00:02:59.213 --> 00:03:02.615 activities during the day, your EVAs. And then, at 5 o’clock, 00:03:02.616 --> 00:03:06.051 you’re still right immersed, literally, in all of your 00:03:06.053 --> 00:03:09.588 activities, the life sciences they have to go on, the public 00:03:09.590 --> 00:03:13.225 outreach, and everything else that you have to do, which is 00:03:13.226 --> 00:03:17.863 similar to flying in space. This is the real deal. 00:03:17.865 --> 00:03:21.166 When we’re doing missions and working here and when we’re in 00:03:21.168 --> 00:03:24.936 the habitat, that is a true, extreme mission. 00:03:24.938 --> 00:03:27.173 There’s consequences and risks to your actions, 00:03:27.175 --> 00:03:29.941 just like there is in space. 00:03:29.943 --> 00:03:33.078 JOSH: This underwater analog also allows engineers to test 00:03:33.080 --> 00:03:36.181 other systems, for instance, the backpacks that astronauts 00:03:36.183 --> 00:03:39.285 wear for EVAs, called the portable life support system, 00:03:39.286 --> 00:03:43.790 or PLSS. It supplies oxygen, removes carbon dioxide, 00:03:43.791 --> 00:03:46.558 regulates temperature in the space suit and contains 00:03:46.560 --> 00:03:49.861 communication hardware. By using a backpack rig to 00:03:49.863 --> 00:03:52.598 simulate the PLSS, the underwater environment allows 00:03:52.600 --> 00:03:55.335 engineers to figure out how best to configure this pack in 00:03:55.336 --> 00:03:58.103 different gravity settings, to make the astronauts as 00:03:58.105 --> 00:04:00.940 comfortable and productive as possible on each EVA. 00:04:00.941 --> 00:04:03.208 Here’s Heather with Nick Skytland, 00:04:03.210 --> 00:04:06.078 a Project Manager in NASA’s Space Life Program. 00:04:06.080 --> 00:04:08.481 NICK SKYTLAND: For each dive, we’ll take them down and put 00:04:08.483 --> 00:04:10.883 this backpack on, and we’ll have them do a number of 00:04:10.885 --> 00:04:14.553 activities. We have them walk back and forth. We have them 00:04:14.555 --> 00:04:18.223 kneel and recover. We have them fall and recover and by 00:04:18.225 --> 00:04:21.260 recover we mean, just get back up. And then we have them pick 00:04:21.261 --> 00:04:24.530 up rocks and put them on a crate. And then at the end, we 00:04:24.531 --> 00:04:26.800 have them climb a ladder, and then come back down. 00:04:26.801 --> 00:04:29.635 JOSH: The exercise allows Nick and his team to adjust the 00:04:29.636 --> 00:04:32.871 backpack rig, and find the most effective center of gravity to 00:04:32.873 --> 00:04:35.975 accomplish the tasks. Center of gravity is the point on 00:04:35.976 --> 00:04:39.245 which an object’s weight is balanced. We use this same 00:04:39.246 --> 00:04:42.348 principle everyday. Let’s see how to calculate the center of 00:04:42.350 --> 00:04:45.651 gravity using a seesaw. The fulcrum is the point that 00:04:45.653 --> 00:04:48.688 supports the board for the seesaw. The weight must be 00:04:48.690 --> 00:04:51.356 evenly distributed on both sides of the fulcrum for the 00:04:51.358 --> 00:04:55.261 board to be balanced. But what would happen if a child who 00:04:55.263 --> 00:04:59.098 weighs 20 kilograms sits on one end of the board, and a second 00:04:59.100 --> 00:05:02.001 child who weighs 25 kilograms sits on the other end? 00:05:02.003 --> 00:05:05.605 The see saw is no longer balanced. Math can help us 00:05:05.606 --> 00:05:08.375 solve this problem. Think of the fulcrum as the center of 00:05:08.376 --> 00:05:11.543 the equation. What’s on one side of the equation must 00:05:11.545 --> 00:05:14.646 balance with the other side. Remember that our board is 5 00:05:14.648 --> 00:05:18.785 meters in length. Five meters is equal to 500 centimeters. 00:05:18.786 --> 00:05:21.988 The fulcrum is located at the center of the board, 250 00:05:21.990 --> 00:05:25.558 centimeters from the end. If the child weighing 20 kilograms 00:05:25.560 --> 00:05:29.428 sits on a mark at the end of the board, she is 250 00:05:29.430 --> 00:05:32.465 centimeters from the center. Where would the second child 00:05:32.466 --> 00:05:35.268 need to sit to balance the see saw? We could write the 00:05:35.270 --> 00:05:39.971 equation to look like this: Twenty times 250 equals 25 00:05:39.973 --> 00:05:44.276 times what? By balancing the equation, we can determine the 00:05:44.278 --> 00:05:47.413 distance from the fulcrum that the second child must sit. 00:05:47.415 --> 00:05:50.550 The board will balance when the child weighing 25 kilograms 00:05:50.551 --> 00:05:54.353 sits 200 centimeters from the fulcrum – that’s 50 centimeters 00:05:54.355 --> 00:05:58.425 from the end of the board. The team in Key Largo often uses 00:05:58.426 --> 00:06:01.093 this kind of mathematical reasoning to solve problems, 00:06:01.095 --> 00:06:03.863 like figuring out the center of gravity for many different 00:06:03.865 --> 00:06:05.998 kinds of exploration activities. 00:06:06.000 --> 00:06:08.300 Here’s Nick and Heather with another example. 00:06:08.301 --> 00:06:10.436 NICK: Actually you have a backpack right there. Why 00:06:10.438 --> 00:06:13.238 don’t you put your backpack on. Now imagine you were outside 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:16.275 working and you had a shovel. And actually, pretend you’re 00:06:16.276 --> 00:06:18.478 just in your back yard and you’re just shoveling 00:06:18.480 --> 00:06:20.613 some things up. HEATHER: Can I be on the moon? 00:06:20.615 --> 00:06:22.915 NICK: Well, Not yet. HEATHER: Oh! Okay. All right. 00:06:22.916 --> 00:06:25.085 NICK: Not yet. All right, so there you go. You’re 00:06:25.086 --> 00:06:27.353 shoveling. All right. It’s pretty easy, right. 00:06:27.355 --> 00:06:29.521 HEATHER: Yeah. It’s easy. NICK: Now imagine someone comes 00:06:29.523 --> 00:06:31.791 along and they put a jug of water in your backpack. 00:06:31.793 --> 00:06:33.993 HEATHER: Okay. Now it’s getting kind of heavy, Nick. 00:06:33.995 --> 00:06:36.195 NICK: Right. It’s getting kind of heavy, so now try it again. 00:06:36.196 --> 00:06:39.298 HEATHER: Yeah. I think I’d probably have to change up how 00:06:39.300 --> 00:06:41.835 I would do the shoveling. NICK: Right. And so that’s 00:06:41.836 --> 00:06:44.236 changing your center of gravity. So we have this c.g. 00:06:44.238 --> 00:06:46.673 rig that allows us to change the center of gravity from 00:06:46.675 --> 00:06:49.975 being very very backwards, to very very forwards, to very 00:06:49.976 --> 00:06:53.680 high to very low and even to the side if we wanted to. 00:06:53.681 --> 00:06:55.815 And we can see how this affects the crew performance 00:06:55.816 --> 00:06:58.183 when doing a number of activities. 00:06:58.185 --> 00:07:01.120 JOSH: Once they figure out how to best configure the rig, 00:07:01.121 --> 00:07:04.023 they can take those lessons learned and apply them to the 00:07:04.025 --> 00:07:06.591 actual portable life support system that astronauts will use 00:07:06.593 --> 00:07:08.661 on EVAs. 00:07:08.663 --> 00:07:11.765 NASA has more analog tests planned throughout the year, 00:07:11.766 --> 00:07:14.333 including more work in Key Largo. 00:07:14.335 --> 00:07:19.266 You can follow the progress at www.NASA.gov. 00:07:19.268 --> 00:07:22.966 ? [music] ? 00:07:36.888 --> 00:07:39.766 .