- 18-Month Space Experiment with Six Volunteers
- Cramped Conditions and Psychological Stress Simulation
- Challenges of a Manned Mission to Mars
It is presumably not for those with claustrophobia.
Six volunteers will be sealed inside this confined, airtight container for 18 months as part of an experiment examining the biological and medical issues that may arise during future protracted space missions.
Incredibly, more than four thousand people initially applied to participate in the Mars-500 experiment. In which six people will spend a year and a half in this barrel-shaped spacecraft in Moscow.
Approximately 250 days to reach Mars, one month on the surface, and 240 days to return.
The spacecraft consists of 550 cubic meters of cramped, claustrophobic modules designed to simulate the psychological stresses of a lengthy, arduous space journey.
Communication with the outside world is delayed by 20 minutes to match the Earth-Mars time difference.
The ultimate reality programme requires food and water, but not drink or smoking, before departure.
A true manned mission to Mars is unlikely to begin before the late 2020s, despite NASA’s Vision for Space Exploration stating that a manned Mars mission is a long-term objective.
