LouRIM goes to Mars!

Louvain-La-Neuve, Mons

Following a successful first initiative with LSM in the air, we now introduce you to LouRIM on Mars!

As part of the M.A.R.S. UCLouvain initiative, Jean Vanderdonckt, Professor at LSM, and his team have published the first study to compare the use of a management and information system simulated on Mars with that on Earth, titled “Might as Well Be on Mars: Insights on the Extraterrestrial Applicability of Interaction Design Frameworks from Earth”.

For two weeks, eight UCLouvain students had the opportunity to test the information system in the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), a prototype habitat, located in Utah (United States), enabling students to work in conditions found on Mars.

The information system was tested four times: once before the mission and three times during the mission – after four, eight and twelve Martian days (called “Sol”). The objective was to identify the losses and the differences in these four scenarios.

The results were then analysed by Prof. Vanderdonckt’s team: Julie Manon (Cliniques Universitaires Saint-Luc), Michael Saint-Guillain (UCLouvain, ICTEam), Philippe Lefèvre, Professor at UCLouvain, Radu-Daniel Vatavu, Professor at the University of Suceava, and Jessica Marquez, Head of Human Factors for Spatial Missions at NASA.

For more information, see the YouTube video and the poster.

This year, LSM supported Romain Maddox (Crew Commander) and Hippolyte Hilgers (Crew GreenHad Officer), who participated in the project during the Easter break.

Visit the MDRS in a 360° video.

Published on July 05, 2024