The mission control simulation at Kilauea Military Camp.

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK – NASA’s BASALT research crew is on Hawaii Island, conducting a simulated Mars mission at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

BASALT, which stands for Biologic Analog Science Associated with Lava Terrains, is working to enable the human-robotic exploration of our neighboring red planet. They are now using the Mars-like Mauna Ulu on Kilauea volcano during their second field deployment, which will continue to November 18th.

An extra-vehicular field crew, taking geological measurements while hiking over the challenging terrain, is being supported by a diverse Science Team located at the Kilauea Military Camp over a mile away.

These two groups are interacting via simulated Mars mission communication delays of roughly 15 minutes in length.

According to the NASA BASALT website, the work will “help the team identify operational concepts and capabilities that enable science and discovery when humans explore Mars.”