Apurva Varia floats in zero gravity. Credit: Steve Boxall / ZERO-G
ASL Communication Test
APURVA VARIA, MISSION: ASTROACCESS
The goal of the ASL Communication Test is to understand sign language in different orientations in zero gravity. During the zero gravity flight, I would sign one word during microgravity, then my partner would copy and spell the sign to verify that he understood it. We repeated the experiment with different signs for a few parabolas. The entire experiment was recorded with several GoPro cameras so the researchers can analyze our signs, facial expressions, and content.
We had a lot of discussions about what signs to use, what sentences to sign, what positions, etc prior to the flight. When I was reading the signs from Justin upside down with the assistance from the coaches, I had to make sure I understood the signs and responded back to Justin. This was my second zero gravity flight, and I found myself to be more adaptable than the first flight because I was able to control my movements better during the second flight.
Next steps
We’ve sent the videos to the Gallaudet researchers for analysis. Once the analysis is done, we hope to improve the test for the next AstroAccess flight in November 2022.
Project Contributors
Justin Baldi, ASL interpreter
Dr. Gaurav Mathur, Gallaudet University researcher
Dr. Raja Kushalnagar, Gallaudet University researcher
Anna Volker, AstroAccess Support