Google Glass Tested by Underwater Astronauts

A team of astronauts has been testing Google Glass while performing underwater "spacewalks" in preparation for a potential asteroid drilling mission.

The use of the smartglasses could assist astronauts with procedures by giving instructions through the display without the need to consult a handheld device.

Nasa Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO), taking place at the Aquarius Lab off the coast of Florida, also tested out other innovative new technologies for future use in space, including a bluetooth heart rate monitor.

"There's a lot of equipment onboard the station that can cause interference with other devices," Jeanette Epps, a Nasa astronaut taking part in the tests, told Space.com.

Interference caused by outdated technologies used on the International Space Station can hinder missions and cause delays during time-sensitive operations.

Mark Vande Hei, an astronaut on the NEEMO mission, said: "What I suspect they're going to realise, and maybe the demonstrators knew that was going to be the result, is that there is bluetooth technology that works really well and is not bothered by the interference that older technology is experiencing."

Initial tests that involved using a hairdryer at the same time as bluetooth devices proved that no interference was produced.

Three of the astronauts taking part in the underwater tests are yet to go to space and the neutrally buoyant environment is often used by Nasa to give astronauts in training an idea of what it will be like in zero gravity.

"I haven't been in space but I've worked in the Mission Control team and I always wondered what it would be like on the other side," Vande Hei said. "This definitely gave me a good sense of it."