NASA will send three astronauts and a Constellation Program aerospace engineer into the ocean depths off the Florida coast from Aug. 6 to 15. They will test lunar exploration concepts and a suite of medical objectives for long-duration spaceflight.

NASA veteran space flyer and aquanaut Nicholas Patrick will lead the 10-day undersea mission aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Aquarius Underwater Laboratory. NASA astronaut Richard Arnold, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Satoshi Furukawa and systems integration engineer Christopher Gerty complete the crew.

During the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations 13 (NEEMO 13), the crew will conduct a variety of undersea “moon walks.” They will test concepts for future lunar exploration using advanced navigation and communication equipment.

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