A NASA mission crew just left the Mars habitat they had been trapped in for over a year. But did you know? These “astronauts” never left Earth! It was a fake flight, a science experiment. Let me explain.
Fake trip, real mission
NASA wants to send astronauts to Mars in the 2030s, a planet about 225 million kilometers from Earth. Quite an exploratory mission! For everything to go well, you first need to run a few tests.
One such test is the CHAPEA-1 mission. An experiment that recreates living conditions on a Martian base. Why? To see how we humans can manage on this planet.
So four explorers (a scientist, a doctor, a flight engineer, and a commander) were trapped (on Earth!) in a small habitat from which they could only leave at the end of the mission… 378 days late.
Daily life of a fake astronaut
These explorers had a long list of things to do.
First: Take walks on “Mars”. An outdoor environment covered with sand (like the Red Planet) was created around the station. The explorers, wearing spacesuits, had to collect soil samples and maintain their equipment.
Next: Growing vegetables. The station was equipped with a vertical farm. Vegetables complemented the meals made from dried foods prepared before the flight. But be warned: food and water were available in very limited quantities.
Then: communicate with NASA control. Because Mars is so far away, messages were often transmitted with a 20-minute delay. In an emergency, the team had to fend for themselves, without waiting for a response from Earth.
First of all: we had to agree!
How did this happen?
On Saturday, the four quasi-Martians stepped out of their home for the first time in more than a year. They were all deeply moved.
“CHAPEA-1 has been a unique experience, with great challenges, great joys and great sorrows,” mission commander Kelly Huston told reporters. “A lot of hard work, but also fun!”
But why go to Mars? The mission’s scientific leader, Anca Silario, had this answer: “Because it’s possible, because space can unite us and bring out the best in us.”
Camille Lopezace news
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