The Electronic FieldBook: A system for supporting distributed field science operations during astronaut training and human planetary exploration

Scientific exploration will play an important role in future human missions to the Moon and Mars. Extra-Vehicular Activities (EVA) on the surface of these objects will be supported by a host of technologies driving operations and data collection. In order to enhance the scientific return of each EVA and utilise expertise located on Earth, it is necessary to record, index and store all the scientific information collected on a planetary surface, and rapidly distribute it amongst the relevant mission support personnel in a structured way. How this information is stored and shared amongst mission support elements will make a significant difference to the feedback that can be provided to EVA teams before, during, and after exploratory EVAs. The Electronic Fieldbook (EFB) is an innovative information system, developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) in the context of their astronaut field training courses and WA campaigns, composed of deployable hardware and software designed to fulfil this role. The system uses peer-to-peer networking and mesh protocols to provide disruption tolerant data transmission, as well as information harmonisation and sharing among all system users. Its software stack is platform agnostic, and the system is able to interface with external instruments and tools to gather and centralise data. A combination of commercial off the shelf and custom hardware currently supports the EFB network and interfaces. Users can collect scientific data and document sampling procedures through attaching images, instrument readings, written and audio notes, and other metadata, and have it automatically distributed to all authorised users across its network. Through this system, the EFB enables real-time situational awareness to all science instructors and simulated mission support positions, such as mission control, science backrooms, and Intra-Vehicular crew. The EFB has been developed in the context of the CAVES and PANGAEA astronaut training programmes developed by ESA and is targeting deployment in future lunar and Martian human exploration missions.

Automated summary

Scientific exploration will be crucial for future human missions to the Moon and Mars. The Electronic Fieldbook (EFB) is an innovative information system developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) to record, index, store, and distribute scientific information collected on planetary surfaces among mission support personnel. The system uses peer-to-peer networking, mesh protocols, and disruption tolerant data transmission to provide real-time situational awareness to all users.