NASA opens applications for ‘ motivated individuals’ willing to isolate & live in a version of Mars

NASA announced Friday that it is seeking applicants to be part of a crew who will live in a 3D-printed Mars habitat for an entire year.

The yearlong analog mission is set to begin in the fall of 2022 and will help the space agency simulate life on a distant world.NASA's grander ambitions are to send humans to the Red Planet by 2037, and the series of upcoming missions – known as Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog – includes three one-year Mars surface simulations based at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, in Houston, Texas.

The second and third analog missions will follow in 2024 and 2025, according to the mission's webpage.

They will support research to develop methods and technologies to prevent and resolve potential problems on future human spaceflight missions to the Moon and Mars.

Successful applicants will live in a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot module named Mars Dune Alpha, and once members enter the simulation, they will not be able to leave for 365 days.The habitat will simulate the challenges of a mission on the Red Planet, including resource limitations, equipment failure, communication delays, and other environmental stressors.

Crews must also undertake a series of tasks – such as simulated spacewalks, scientific research, use of virtual reality and robotic controls, and exchanging communications.

Grace Douglas, the lead scientist for NASA’s Advanced Food Technology research effort at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, said: “The analog is critical for testing solutions to meet the complex needs of living on the Martian surface.

“Simulations on Earth will help us understand and counter the physical and mental challenges astronauts will face before they go.”

In a press release, NASA said it is looking for "healthy, motivated U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are non-smokers, age 30 to 55 years old, and proficient in English for effective communication between crew and mission control.""A master’s degree in a STEM field such as engineering, mathematics, or biological, physical or computer science from an accredited institution with at least two years of professional STEM experience or a minimum of one thousand hours piloting an aircraft is required," NASA added.

Applications opened Friday and will run through September 12, 2021.

Candidates will also have to pass NASA's long-duration flight astronaut simulation and are required to have a COVID-19 vaccination, according to the space agency's website