Grant For Research NNX15AK73G

This is a $85,430.42 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the Georgia Tech Research Corporation, a non-profit research organization and state institution of higher education, to conduct a three-year programmatic investigation into team task switching for astronaut crews on the International Space Station (ISS). The research aims to develop concrete countermeasures to mitigate the risks of inadequate cooperation, coordination, communication, and psychosocial adaptation within astronaut teams as they work toward personal, team, and system goals in the complex operating environment of deep space exploration.

The research leverages agent-based models, laboratory experiments, unobtrusive data collection, virtual experiments, and validation using NASA's space analogs to characterize and model the switches between tasks, tools, teams, and multi-team systems. The findings will directly address NASA's identified team gaps for autonomous, long-duration, and/or long-distance exploration missions related to threats to the team, countermeasures to support team function, validated methods to maintain team function, and factors to compose highly effective crews.

This grant does not carry any set-aside designation. Georgia Tech Research Corporation has a history of serving as both a prime contractor and subcontractor on major defense and civilian agency programs, often leveraging its expertise in areas like materials science, physics, engineering, computer science, and space science research.