Running from 9 to 22 October 2025, the ADAMA Analogue Astronaut Mission is a collaboration between the University of Adelaide and international space research start-up ICEE.Space.
Four analogue astronauts will live and work in a controlled environment inside the University’s Extraterrestrial Environmental Simulation (Exterres) CRATER facility at the Roseworthy Campus, a purpose-built site that replicates lunar surface conditions.
Associate Professor John Culton, director of the university’s Andy Thomas Centre for Space Resources (ATCSR), said the partnership with ICEE.Space marks an important milestone for Australia’s growing space capability.
“The University of Adelaide is thrilled to host the ADAMA Mission with ICEE.Space. Our Exterres CRATER facility provides a unique environment that mirrors the lighting and terrain astronauts experience on the lunar surface,” Culton said.
The mission’s crew includes Commander Kato Claeys, Vice Commander and HabCom Louis Burtz, science officer Ilija Hristovski, and base engineer and medical officer Adrian Eilingsfeld. During the fortnight-long exercise, they will test sustainable life support systems, next-generation analogue spacesuits, and lunar operations designed to inform real-world astronaut training and mission design.
Researchers from the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute and the National Imaging Facility are also involved, using advanced MRI scans to study how isolation and operational stress affect brain function and connectivity.
ADAMA – short for Astronautical Demonstration of an Analogue Mission in Australia – forms part of the World’s Biggest Analog (WBA), a coordinated, two-week global proof-of-concept mission being run simultaneously in countries including the United States, Austria, Poland and Brazil. The WBA is the largest space analogue project ever attempted and the first to simulate multiple lunar outposts operating in parallel.
ICEE.Space co-founder Charlotte Pouwels said analogue missions like ADAMA are crucial for testing new systems and understanding human factors before sending astronauts deeper into space.
“Earth-based analogue missions allow us to refine procedures, technologies and medical interventions before they’re used in orbit or on other worlds,” Pouwels said.
“The ADAMA mission showcases the power of international collaboration, innovation and education in driving forward the next era of space exploration.”
Professor Anna Ma-Wyatt, an experimental psychologist and expert in human-autonomy teaming at the ATCSR, said the mission would provide valuable insights into how humans adapt to the psychological and cognitive demands of space.
“Astronauts must contend with isolation, confinement and communication delays,” Ma-Wyatt said.
“The ADAMA mission helps us better understand how these conditions impact mental wellbeing and how to mitigate the risks of long-duration spaceflight.”
Findings from the ADAMA mission will inform future lunar and deep space missions, including those involving human habitation on the moon and Mars.
The University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia are set to merge in January 2026 to form Adelaide University, a new institution that will build on both universities’ strengths to deliver globally relevant research, innovative teaching and an outstanding student experience.