Researchers at Kelly Lake in British Columbia have been testing mission scenarios to simulate communication with explorers during travel to a near-Earth asteroid. The team introduced a delay of one minute and 40 seconds to communications with the DeepWorker submersibles as they explored the depths of the lake. Mike Gernhardt, an astronaut and PLRP sub pilot, explained, “We are targeting the asteroids or possibly the moons of Mars as possibly the next big step in human space exploration. And one of the things that’s very different about that, compared to what we’ve done all throughout NASA’s history, is that we won’t have real-time comm.”

During the 2011 PLRP field season, Astrobiology Magazine will be providing an Ask a Scientist feature. Readers can pose questions directly to the scientists in the field while they explore the depths of Kelly Lake.

The Pavilion Lake Research Project (PLRP) is funded by the CSACARN program and NASAMMAMA program. Additional funding provided by NASAESMD Analogs, NASAASTEP and Nuytco Research. Previous support for the program has also been received from the NASA Spaceward Bound Program, the National Geographic Society, and McMaster University.