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When Voices Fall Silent: How Text Messaging Can Save Lives in Space and on Earth

On October 1 and 2, 2025, the Chair of Medical Informatics at the Friedrich-Alexander-University (FAU) conducted the Asynchronous Delayed Assistance Procedural Test (ADAPT) campaign at the LUNA Analog Facility in Cologne. LUNA is jointly operated by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the European Space Agency (ESA) and with its detailed lunar regolith test field and ground control facilities, LUNA offered optimal conditions for this interdisciplinary test campaign.

The ADAPT campaign focused on exploring how instant messaging systems can support medical decision-making in situations where voice communication is limited, delayed, or unavailable. Communication constraints are a key challenge in space operations, especially during planetary exploration missions where long signal delays and environmental limitations affect real-time coordination between the crew and mission control.

During the simulation, the crew’s voice link to Ground was intentionally terminated, forcing all coordination and medical assistance to rely entirely on text-based exchanges. The central research question was: Can short, structured text messages maintain orientation, tempo, and safety when communication is impaired?

EV setting up a mock-up repeater to reestablish voice communication. © DLR/ESA
Preparing for medical evacuation with drag stretcher. © DLR/ESA

Throughout the campaign, the EVA team worked through a dynamic operational scenario that evolved from initial sampling activities to a simulated medical emergency and finally to a controlled evacuation. Meanwhile, the ground team, consisting of a crew communicator and a medical officer, provided guidance, medical advice, and procedural feedback through dedicated chat interfaces. Within the test runs, different styles of messaging were evaluated – comparing free-form text communication with predefined, structured message templates designed to reduce ambiguity and improve efficiency under stress.

Beyond its relevance for future space missions, the same communication principles have clear terrestrial applications. Scenarios such as hospital IT outages, remote emergency responses, or disaster management situations can benefit from similar structured, text-based coordination methods when real-time communication channels are disrupted. This demonstrates once again how space research contributes directly to improving systems and safety on Earth.

The collected chat logs, timestamps, and recordings from the ADAPT campaign are now undergoing detailed analysis. The goal is to identify message patterns, timing behaviors, and handover cues that enhance operational resilience when communication channels are degraded.

LUNA ADAPT crew on the second test day. © DLR/ESA