4 Volunteers Enter Virtual Mars Simulation Made By NASA, Won't Come Out For A Year And 13 Days

Ever since humans set foot on the moon, the idea of widening the scope of human habitat has been roaming the purview of every astronomer. While many have been looking hard to find the next planet Earth, some believe we already have a contender close by.

Unmanned missions to Mars have yet been all but practice for the eventual landing of a human spacecraft on the red planet. While people on Mars are still food for sci-fi films, NASA is taking a big step toward the mission.

Twitter

4 Volunteers Have Entered NASA's Mars Simulation

On Sunday, four volunteers entered a simulation that poses a virtual habitat mimicking that of the planet Mars. They are expected to remain inside the simulation for 378 days while facing a range of challenges designed to anticipate a real-life human mission to Mars.?

Twitter

Four volunteers, research scientist Kelly Haston, structural engineer Ross Brockwell, emergency medicine physician Nathan Jones and U.S. Navy microbiologist Anca Selariu, were selected from NASAs Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) for its first-ever yearlong mission.

None of the four volunteers are astronauts.?

Before going off inside the simulation, the four volunteers met with Grace Douglas, the mission's principal investigator at NASA, at the briefing. Douglas thanked the quadruplets for their dedication to exploring and gave them her best wishes.

Haston, who is designated by NASA as the commander of the simulated Mars mission, opened up about the importance of spaceflight and exploration which she noted “exemplifies some of the best qualities of humankind.”

Hastons also lauded her crew members on the virtual trip calling them an “amazing group of dedicated individuals who feel very passionate about space exploration and science.”

The Experiment Has Bee Set Up At The Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas

The four volunteers will spend more than a year inside a simulation built at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. They will only be allowed to come out after one year and 13 days.?

Twitter

Inside the 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot habitat, the crew has been instructed to carry out “mission activities” which include spacewalks, robotic operations, growing of crops, habitat maintenance, personal hygiene and exercise.

The habitat is small yet it consists of a kitchen, private crew quarters, and two bathrooms, along with medical, work and recreation areas. The crew will also face errors and obstacles designed to mirror an actual Mars mission. They will have to overcome stints like resource limitations, equipment failure, communication delays and environmental stressors.?

NASA has designed such an experiment in hopes that it will help them “collect cognitive and physical performance data to give us more insight into the potential impacts of long-duration missions to Mars.”

For more trending stories, follow us on?Telegram.