Four Individuals Will Spend The Next Year Isolated In A Mars-Like Habitat
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sealed four volunteers into a simulated Martian habitat last month according to Mint. They were sealed here to complete a year-long analogue mission to simulate what it’s like living on Mars. The main objective of the mission is to learn more about the human phycology and logistics of living long-term on a different planet.
Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog, or CHAPEA, is the first of three different planned simulation missions taking place at Nasa’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.
The 3D-printer 1,700 square-foot living space is called Mars Dune Alpha. Here the crew will live, work, sleep, exercise, and perform various experiments for the next year.
The crew consists of four members, Kelly Haston (a biologist), Ross Brockwell (a structural engineer), Nathan Jones (a physician), and Anca Selariu (a Navy microbiologist). The volunteers for this mission had to pass the same testing that astronaut candidates do before being approved for a mission.
This mission will involve Extra Vehicular Activities (EVAs). To complete these, the crew will shortly leave their habitat and enter an adjacent enclosure filled with red sand. During the simulated spacewalk, the crew will have to wear space suits.
Grace Douglas, CHAPEA principal investigator, said in a statement, “The simulation will allow us to collect cognitive and physical performance data to give us more insight into the potential impacts of long-duration missions to Mars on crew health and performance.”
Douglas added, “ultimately, this information will help NASA make informed decisions to design and plan for a successful human mission to Mars.”
The crew on this mission can communicate with the outside world, but it is on a time delay. On Mars, it could take up to 22 minutes for a message to reach Earth, that’s 44 minutes round-trip. This same restriction is being applied to CHAPEA.
A freeze-dried diet, similar to what Martian astronauts will need to eat, is being followed by the crew.
“They are about to embark on an analog mission that encompasses operations, logistics, and research of living and working on Mars. The importance of this study cannot be overstated,” says Judith Hayes, Chief Science Officer, Human Health and Performance Directorate.
The habitat that the crew is in includes airlocks, hatches, and a medical station. The crew can leave for medical emergencies, they are in high hopes that they can deal with minor health problems on their own.
The CHAPEA1 crew will emerge from their isolation in July 2024. CHAPEA’s other two missions will be conducted in 2025 and 2026, respectively.
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