Mission Journal 8-Bob Thirsk: Mission Training Day 3: Wednesday, October 6, 2004

I will do the same thing again next week. The only difference then will be that Dr. Anvari will not be next to me. He will be several thousand kilometers away in Hamilton, Ontario, and I will be alone with my three crewmates in the Aquarius habitat 50 feet undersea. This is what we call "telementoring." While I perform the operation, camera images of the interior and the exterior of the patient's abdomen will be transmitted to Hamilton. Dr. Anvari will follow my progress and provide helpful comments. High speed data lines will be used to transmit the camera images to Hamilton and Dr. Anvari's comments to me.

Why is telementoring capability important to an astronaut? Someday within my lifetime, a crew of astronauts representing many nations will set out from Earth on the first human exploration mission to Mars. This will be a phenomenal undertaking and probably one of the most important events of the 21st century. This round-trip mission will last two-and-a-half years. It is not inconceivable, therefore, that one of these astronauts could develop an illness that would require surgical treatment (e.g., appendicitis, cholecystitis, abcess) while enroot or on the Martian surface. Since it would be impossible to return the stricken astronaut to Earth for treatment, another astronaut on the crew will perform the necessary operation. The operating astronaut could be telementored by a surgeon on Earth to reliably and safely provide the required medical care.

I like to think that the first Mars explorers are alive today and probably in elementary school. The research that Dr. Anvari's team is conducting will protect the health of these future astronauts and enhance mission success. Even more important, this same telementoring technology can be used today to provide health care to people who live in remote regions of Canada and elsewhere in the world. Pretty cool stuff, eh?