Скачать или смотреть The World’s Biggest Analog and NASA Simulations: Parallel Paths to Mars

In this video, we introduce Dan “NovySan” Novy, Assistant Professor of Emerging Media Arts at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and Communications Officer for the World’s Biggest Analog (WBA) mission. We follow Dan’s role and challenges during the ongoing Armash, Armenia analog mission, part of WBA’s global simulation campaign this October.

As the habitat’s communications lead, Dan bridges the habitat in Armenia, a local Mission Control Center (MCC), and the global MCC in Vienna operated by the Austrian Space Forum. He oversees voice and data channels, latency simulation, and internal coordination to maintain mission fidelity—all while adapting to the unexpected in analog space.

We also unpack the psychological and performance measurement side of analog missions:

WinSCAT — NASA’s spaceflight cognitive assessment tool used to monitor mood, stress, fatigue, and cognitive shifts
Canada Arm tests and robotic manipulator tasks adapted for analog missions
Performance metrics from physiological sensors, reaction times, and task success rates
Additional human factors experiments built into the WBA mission

You’ll see how Dan contextualizes his role in the World's Biggest Analog and comparisons between NASA’s mock-up simulations (ISS, Mars habitat simulators) and the WBA’s approach will be drawn. Rather than competing, the WBA mission is designed to complement and expand analog research.

This mission offers rare, real-time insight into what it’s like to simulate Mars and Moon surface operations, communication stress, cross-habitat coordination, and psychological resilience in isolation.

Timestamps:
0:00 – 00:52 : Introduction & Dan Novy bio
00:52 -01:49 : Why go on an analog space mission?
01:49 - 04:40 : Behavioral Health and Performance Lab at Johnson Space Center NASA
04:40 - 05:37 – Communication Simulation between Earth and Mars while at the World's Biggest Analog
05:37 - 06:44 – How does the World's Biggest Analog work?
06:44 - 07:44 – WinSCAT
07:44 - end - My simulation experience

Tags / Keywords:
#WBA #World’s Biggest Analog #analog space mission #Mars analog, #WinSCAT #NASA simulation #habitat communications #Dan Novy #Armenia analog mission #human factors #cognitive assessment #global analog mission #analog astronauts