Today the Austrian Space Forum’s (OeWF) expert panel announced the experiments and institutions who have qualified for the next OeWF-Mars analog mission “AMADEE-20”. The 16 peer reviewed experiments come from 9 countries and represent scientific disciplines that will be essential to the human exploration of Mars, such as engineering, geology, biology, human factors and psychology. Participating institutions come from France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the USA and Austria. “AMADEE-20” will be managed by the OeWF and hosted by the Israeli Space Agency in cooperation with D-Mars, taking place from mid-October to mid-November 2020 in the Negev Desert, Israel.

For a detailed list of experiments and research institutions see below.

Preparations for AMADEE-20 enter next Phase

Preparations of the Austrian Space Forum’s next Mars analog mission now enter a vital phase as the participating institutions will ready their experiments to be deployed and conducted by six OeWF-analog astronauts in Israel. Dr. Gernot Grömer, OeWF Administrative Director, outlines the next steps: ”The selected experiments will not be carried out by the internationally selected institutions who developed them but by our analog astronauts. These highly qualified experts will be deployed at the test site in Israel to work in isolation, only supported via time delayed communication by the Mission Support Center in Innsbruck, Austria. Thus, to ensure efficient, safe and productive performance, the respective scientists will provide detailed documentation as well as train our analog astronauts on conducting their experiments.”

International Mars analog Mission obeys Exploration Cascade

The Austrian Space Forum’s 13th Mars analog mission is again characterized by highly qualified international cooperations. Dr. Gernot Grömer: ”The process of selecting suitable experiments for AMADEE-20 has – as in previous missions – lead to interesting research questions that fit the mission architecture very well and will provide valuable insights for the preparation of human Mars exploration. All 16 experiments will be conducted according to our ‘exploration cascade’, a specifically developed algorithm defining an efficient deployment sequence. I’m looking forward to the upcoming procedure- and-hardware-training regarding these 16 experiments.”

The following list provides a brief overview of the involved research institutions and their experiments.
More information can be found on our homepage amadee.oewf.org

What is Analog Research?
“Analog research is designed to test concepts, working procedures and equipment to find the weak spots so the actual mission can be realized as safely as possible,” says Dr. Gernot Grömer, Administrative Director of the Austrian Space Forum and continues,“ the purpose of simulating a Mars-mission on Earth is to prepare for future crewed missions on the Red Planet. To perform the experiments, the OeWF is one of only five research groups worldwide that has developed a prototype spacesuit which is worn by the OeWF’s analog astronauts during their mission.”

What is an Analog Astronaut?

The Austrian Space Forum’s analog astronauts are carefully selected experts who are trained to execute most of the science field activities while wearing the OeWF´s spacesuit prototype. They also act as a public face and represent the mission as STEM-ambassadors for media and educational activities. Analog astronauts conduct spaceflight-simulations in Mars-like regions on earth as well as test and evaluate workflows and human factors pertinent to human Mars exploration. Their training includes planetology, geology, astrobiology, media training, stress management, emergency care, fitness and above all operating the spacesuit prototype.
The OeWF is one of only five institutions worldwide which has so far developed such a prototype. It emulates the restrictions of an actual planetary surface spacesuit, like weight, resistance or limited sensory input, whilst protecting the analog astronaut from the environment and keeping him/her alive. An elaborate human-machine interface, including a sensor network and specifically developed software assist the analog astronaut during planetary surface operations. The 45kg heavy prototype has been developed to optimize interactions with other (robotic) components, like a rover, and minimize the risk of human contamination.

ABOUT THE AUSTRIAN SPACE FORUM
(Österreichisches Weltraum Forum, OeWF)
The Austrian Space Forum is one of the world’s leading institutions conducting Mars analog missions, thus paving the way for the future human exploration of the Red Planet. Experts from a broad variety of disciplines as well as the spaceflight sector constitute the core of the OeWF’s continued endeavors that on a regular basis include national and international institutions from science and industry to work at the cutting edge of scientific research. On doing so the Austrian Space Forum is using its excellent contacts to opinion leaders, politics and media to further and internationally propagate Austrian top-level research. The Austrian Space Forum also contributes significantly to inspiring and educating young people in the sectors of science, technology and engineering. The OeWF offers internships to students and pupils, its experts supervise scientific papers on a regular basis. www.oewf.org

Media Contact:
Mag. Monika Fischer
Media Officer
Austrian Space Forum
Tel: +43 699 1213 4610

This article is available in: German