SIMOC Live: A Scalable, Open-source, Mesh Network Based Platform for ECLSS Monitoring

SIMOC Live is an open-source, mesh network-based platform for real-time Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) monitoring, specifically developed for terrestrial analog habitats and future off-world missions. Building upon SIMOC—a Scalable, Interactive Model of an Off-world Community—SIMOC Live extends this agent-based model (ABM) framework to provide real-time ECLSS data acquisition and visualization, creating a cohesive monitoring solution for habitat crews and Mission Control. SIMOC Live employs a resilient wireless mesh network (WMN) architecture, integrating low-cost, off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware and modular sensor configurations, including CO₂, relative humidity, temperature, pressure, VOC and light sensors. Each mesh node, built upon a Raspberry Pi Zero computer and Adafruit sensor modules, captures and transmits data to a central server via MQTT protocol, allowing efficient, low-latency data flow. This setup ensures uninterrupted data collection by dynamically rerouting traffic around any failed nodes, providing robust, fault-tolerant communication within an isolated environment. Data is provided in open formats (CSV and JSON), facilitating seamless integration with existing ECLSS systems and centralized analysis platforms. Deployed during four missions at the Space Analog for the Moon and Mars (SAM) – an hermetically sealed and pressurized research facility located at the University of Arizona Biosphere 2 – SIMOC Live demonstrated reliable, real-time air quality monitoring under light-travel time delay conditions. The SIMOC Live platform will be deployed at participating World’s Biggest Analog (WBA) habitat sites in October 2025 to establish a unified monitoring network that supports real-time, cross-site comparisons of habitat air quality. Building upon six years of publications about SIMOC at ICES, this paper presents SIMOC Live’s architecture, implementation across analog habitats, and preliminary results from SAM, along with updates from ongoing WBA deployments, illustrating its potential to enhance autonomous habitat management for planetary exploration.