But look who it has appointed to carry it out: Jim Rose, former Deputy Chief Inspector of Schools in England - knighted this summer following his 2006 report into the teaching of early reading, with its emphasis on synthetic phonics.
"The moonbuggy race is intended to inspire students to confront the kind of hard tasks that NASA takes on, so they will be ready to carry on the mission, " said Dr. Jim Dowdy, University Relations officer with the Education Office at Marshall Space Flight Center.
Prof Jim Dornan said he believes medical staff have the competencies and experience required to carry out their own mental health assessment without the involvement of a consultant psychiatrist.