Dust storms are a significant challenge for Mars exploration due to its thin atmosphere and lack of a global magnetic field, which make it highly susceptible to storms that can cover vast areas and last for months. These storms pose a threat to human missions and robotic explorers that rely on solar power. The small and electrostatic nature of Mars' dust particles means they can stick to surfaces and penetrate machinery and even the micro-crevices within the machinery, making it crucial to train astronauts to deal with the dust atmosphere. To address this, the goal of this storyboard is to develop a VR simulation to test astronauts' prediction, prevention, and restoration abilities during dust storms.
They will be analysed based on their performances across different metrics:
(1) Accuracy in interpreting data from Martian satellites
(2) Communicating effectively with crew mates (relevant information (bits) transmitted per words spoken using NLP like Natural Language Toolkit)
(3) Charting the optimal route for timely preventative measures
(4) Prioritising preservation of research specimens and crew-life
(5) Accurately testing potential dust breeches in machinery
(6) Adapting to unforeseen circumstances like - equipment and system failures; breakdown of storage containers; dust breaches; communication disruptions. The astronaut will be expected to introduce redundancy throughout the procedures.
Completion time: 8-10 hrs
No. of Assets: 16
