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Last summer, NASA announced that it was seeking applications from professionals with certain qualifications who would like to spend more than a month in a simulated Martian habitat. Fast forward to today, October 1, and the space agency is back with the names of the four people who will spend 45 days living and working in HERA, the human exploration research analogue developed for the project.
While this is the dream of space agencies and private companies around the world, humanity is not quite ready for a human journey to Mars. A number of technological innovations are still needed to make this type of long-duration mission possible, as well as more research on everything from how to provide astronauts with fresh food to how the human psyche will handle the life spent living in a Martian Outpost.
Among other things, NASA wants to know how teams will interact with each other and accomplish their tasks while living in a relatively cramped Martian habitat, including the behaviors they may exhibit. That’s where HERA comes in: the last simulated life experience on Mars will last 45 days and involve relatively young, healthy non-smokers who can take psychological and physical tests.
This particular HERA mission will involve the simulation of a long journey to the Martian moon Phobos, including increasingly delayed communications with the outside world – up to a five-minute delay between the team and researchers. This will, among other things, require the crew to operate with great autonomy in their own operations while helping to refine the type of communication that would take place during a real mission.
The main crew for the upcoming HERA mission will include Lauren Cornell, Monique Garcia, Christopher Roberts and Madelyne Willis. Additionally, NASA has selected rescue crew members Justin Lawrence and Pu Wang. Additional Mars habitat simulation missions will take place in the future through September 2022, giving others the chance to participate.
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