SEA STAR Crew Completes Five-Day Underwater Mission Near Key Largo

Dr. Michaela Musilova led the SEA STAR crew through a five-day stay at Jules’ Undersea Lab near Key Largo, Florida. The team carried out experiments and outreach activities before making a gradual return to the surface.

Key details

• The habitat sat about 22 feet (7 meters) underwater.
• The crew studied cognitive performance and reaction times under pressure; crew members said their test responses seemed slower, but the account gave no measured results.
• Microgreens experiments compared seeds transferred under different pressure changes. The account described signs of barotrauma in seeds exposed to a sudden pressure release.
• Other activities included buoyancy experiments, testing student-built environmental sensors, underwater conservation work, and a remote habitat tour for a simulated space-station team in Slovakia.
• The crew followed a route around the lagoon to adjust to lower pressure before surfacing.

The SEA STAR crew spent five days living underwater at Jules’ Undersea Lab near Key Largo.

Why it matters

Underwater habitats let researchers and students test experiments, equipment and team activities in a pressurized environment. SEA STAR’s work ranged from plant research and environmental sensors to a remote tour connecting the Florida habitat with a simulated space-station team in Slovakia.

What happens next

The mission’s mix of research and outreach gives future underwater crews a broad set of experiments to build on. Which SEA STAR activity would you most like to see developed further?