Welcome Home HERA Mission XVII!
With the Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA) habitat, we complete studies to prepare us for exploration to asteroids, Mars, and the Moon⊠here on Earth! The studies are called analogs, and they simulate space missions to study how different aspects of deep space affect humans. During a HERA mission, the crew (i.e., the research participants) live and work very much as astronauts do, with minimal contact with anyone other than Mission Control for 45 days.
The most recent study, Mission XVII, just âreturned to Earthâ on June 18. (i.e., the participants egressed, or exited the habitat at our Johnson Space Center in Houston after their 45-day study.) We talked with the crew, Ellie, Will, Chi, and Michael, about the experience. Here are some highlights!
Why did you decide to participate in HERA Mission XVII?
HERA Mission VXII participants (from left to right) Ellie, Will, Chi, and Michael.
âMy masterâs is in human factors,â said Chi, who studies the interaction between humans and other systems at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. âI figured this would be a cool way to study the other side of the table and actually participate in an analog.â For Michael, who holds a PhD in aerospace engineering and researches immunology and radio biology, it was an opportunity to experience life as an astronaut doing science in space. âIâve flown [experiments] on the space station and shuttle,â he said. âNow I wanted to see the other side.â For Will, a geosciences PhD, it provided an opportunity to contribute to space exploration and neuroscience, which he considers two of the biggest fields with the most potential in science. âHere, we have this project that is the perfect intersection of those two things,â he said. And Ellie, a pilot in the Air Force, learned about HERA while working on her masterâs thesis on Earth and space analogs and how to improve them for deep-space studies. âA lot of my interests are similar to Chiâs,â she said. âHuman factors and physiological aspects are things that I find very fascinating.â
NASA missions all have patches, and HERA Mission XVII is no different. Did you get to design your patch?
HERA Mission VXII patch, which reads âMay the Force be with youâ in Latin and features Star Wars iconography. Itâs a reference to the missionâs start date, May 4th aka Star Wars Day!
âWe did!â They said âŠwith a little the help from Michaelâs brother, who is a designer. He drew several different designs based on the crewâs ideas. They picked one and worked together on tweaks. âWe knew we were going [inside the habitat] on May Fourth,â Michael said. âWe knew it would be Star Wars Day. So we did a Star Wars theme.â The patch had to come together fairly quickly though, since a Star Wars Day âlaunchâ wasnât the initial plan. âWe were supposed to start two weeks earlier,â Ellie said. âIt just so happened the new start date was May the Fourth!â Along with the Star Wars imagery, the patch includes a hurricane symbol, to pay tribute to hurricane Harvey which caused a previous crew to end their mission early, and an image of the HERA habitat. Will joked that designing the patch was âour first team task.â
How much free time did you have and what did you do with it?
HERA Mission XVII crew looking down the ladders inside the habitat.
âIt was a decent amount,â Michael said. âI could have used more on the harder days, but in a way itâs good we didnât have more because itâs harder to stay awake when you have nothing to do.â (The mission included a sleep reduction study, which meant the crew only got five hours of sleep a night five days a week.) âWith the time I did have, I read a lot,â he said. He also drew, kept a journal, and âwrote bad haikus.â Because of the sleep study, Ellie didnât read as much. âFor me, had I tried to read or sit and do anything not interactive, I would have fallen asleep,â she said.
The crewâs art gallery, where they hung drawing and haikus they wrote.
Journaling and drawing were popular ways to pass the time. âWe developed a crew art gallery on one of the walls,â Will said. They also played board gamesâin particular a game where you score points by making words with lettered tiles on a 15Ă15 grid. (Yes that one!) âPlaying [that game] with two scientists wasnât always fun though,â Ellie joked, referencing some of the more obscure vocabulary words Will and Michael had at the ready. âI was like, âWhat does that word mean?â âWell that word means lava flow,â she said laughing. (The rest of the crew assured us she fared just fine.)
Chi tried reading, but found it difficult due to the dimmed lights that were part of an onboard light study. She took on a side project instead: 1000 paper cranes. âThere is a story in JapanâIâm half Japaneseâthat if you make a 1000 cranes, itâs supposed to grant you a wish,â she said. She gave hers to her grandmother.
The whole crew having dinner together on âSophisticated Saturdays!â From left to right: Will, Ellie, Chi, and Michael. Theyâre wearing their Saturday best, which includes the usual research equipment.
On weekends, the crew got eight hours of sleep, which they celebrated with âSophisticated Saturdays!â âComing in, we all brought an outfit that was a little fancy,â Ellie said. (Like a tie, a vest, an athletic dressâthat kind of thing.) âWe would only put it on Saturday evenings, and weâd have dinner on the first level at the one and only table we could all sit at and face each other,â she said. âWe would pretend it was a different fancy restaurant every week.â
The table set for a âcivilizedâ Saturday dinner. Once the crewâs hydroponics grew, they were able to add some greenery to the table.
âIt was a way to feel more civilized,â Will said, who then offered another great use of their free time: establishing good habits. âI would use the free time to journal, for example. Iâd just keep it up every day. That and stretching. Hydrating. Flossing.â
Like real astronauts, you were in contact with Mission Control and further monitored by HERA personnel. Was it weird being on camera all the time?
HERA personnel and the monitors they use for a typical HERA mission.
âI was always aware of it,â Michael said, âbut I donât think it changed my behavior. Itâs not like I forgot about it. It was always there. I just wasnât willing to live paranoid for 45 days.â Ellie agreed. âIt was always in the back of my mind,â she said, further adding that they wore microphones and various other sensors. âWe were wired all the time,â she said.
After the study, the crew met up with the people facilitating the experiments, sometimes for the first time. âIt was really fun to meet Mission Control afterwards,â Will said. âThey had just been this voice coming from the little boxes. It was great getting to meet them and put faces to the voices,â he said. âOf course, they knew us well. Very well.â
For more information on HERA, visit our analogs homepage.
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