Astronauts Are Testing Out Microsoft’s Holographic ‘HoloLens’ Headsets In Space
British astronaut Tim Peake and his NASA crew mate Scott Kelly (pictured) have been testing out Microsoft’s HoloLens headsets on the International Space Station.
Scott Kelly, who is spending 12 months aboard the ISS as part of the ‘Year in Space’ study, posted an image of himself wearing one of the headsets with the word “wow”.
Unlike virtual reality headsets like the Facebook-owned Oculus and Samsung’s Gear VR, the Hololens uses Augmented Reality (AR) where holographic images are combined with the wearer’s real world view.
Another picture posted by Tim Peake shows both him and Kelly floating in microgravity while wearing the headsets, with Peake quipping: “All going well until we found the Alien Invaders game.”
The two astronauts trying out the holographic headsets (Tim Peake/Twitter)
The HoloLens devices on the ISS are being used as part of NASA’s ‘Sidekick Project’. The goal of the study is to get space station crews assistance when and where they need it, potentially cutting down on training time and enabling astronauts to work more efficiently in space.
The idea is that astronauts can use the ‘Remote Expert Mode’ to hook up to Earth-based advisors via Skype so that they can be coached through tricky tasks such as complex repairs.
What’s mode, holographic illustrations can be projected on top of the objects that the crew is working on to help them through any difficult procedures.
NASA is also using the headsets at its Jet Propulsion Laboratory using holograms of Mars Rover images to explore the red planet.
Image: Scott Kelly/NASA
