A NASA mission could capture an asteroid in the 2020s, researchers decided to test out the technology underwater.
The research team tested a "mockup" of the Orion spacecraft that will carry astronauts to the asteroid in a 40-foot-deep swimming pool at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory at NASA's Johnson Space Center, a NASA news release reported.
The mission's goal would be to capture an asteroid and put it into orbit near the moon.
"We're working on the techniques and tools we might use someday to explore a small asteroid that was captured from an orbit around the sun and brought back by a robotic spacecraft to orbit around the moon," researcher Stan Love said in the news release. "When it's there, we can send people there to take samples and take a look at it up close. That's our main task; we're looking at tools we'd use for that, how we'd take those samples."
Another goal of the future mission would be to collect core samples that show the object's layers. The team tested out a pneumatic hammer to see if it would be effective in collecting this sample.
The team also tested out a spacesuit that could be used on the mission. The mission would require a launch and entry suit that could protect astronauts during the most dangerous parts of the spaceflight; the suit would also need to double as spacewalk attire to avoid added weight on the craft.
The suit is called the Advanced Crew Escape Suit (ACES), and will most likely undergo modifications in the future.
"We need some significant modifications to make it easy to translate," researcher Steve Bowen said in the news release. "I can't stretch my arms out quite as far as in the [space station space suit]. The work envelop is very small. So as we get through, we look at these tasks. These tasks are outstanding to help us develop what needs to be modified in the suit, as well."
WATCH:
