White House Makes Note of NASA Desert RATS
According to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy: “For the past week, hoards of NASA human space exploration study teams have been gallivanting around the Arizona desert as part of NASA’s Desert Research And Technology Studies, or Desert RATS.
According to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy: “For the past week, hoards of NASA human space exploration study teams have been gallivanting around the Arizona desert as part of NASA’s Desert Research And Technology Studies, or Desert RATS.
The Desert RATS demonstrations–held in the Arizona desert because it is a prime location here on earth for simulating future exploration destinations–offer engineers, astronauts, and scientists a unique opportunity to test new mission concepts and learn how to work with robotic helpers. Among other hardware at the site are two Space Exploration Vehicles (SEVs), which can be adapted for surface or in-space missions. The SEVs have pressurized cabins, allowing the astronauts to live and work inside of them in a shirt-sleeve environment. For the first time at Desert RATS, the two SEVs will dock with a Habitat Demonstration Unit, which helps simulate for the crew what living and working off planet would really be like.
But this year, not wanting to leave anyone’s ideas out of the excitement of exploration, NASA has made great strides in bringing Desert RATS to the public.” More.
