US space agency NASA is looking for people to spend a year pretending to live on Mars. They looking for applicants who will participate in a one-year analog mission in a habitat to simulate life on a distant world and it’s set to kick off in Autumn 2022.
A SIMULATED MARS EXPERIENCE
The yearlong simulated mission will see four crew members stay in a 1,700-square-foot space at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where they will perform tasks such as simulated spacewalks and will use virtual reality and other robotic controls:
The habitat will simulate the challenges of a mission on Mars, including resource limitations, equipment failure, communication delays, and other environmental stressors. Crew tasks may include simulated spacewalks, scientific research, use of virtual reality and robotic controls, and exchanging communications. The results will provide important scientific data to validate systems and develop solutions, states NASA’s website.
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Analog Mars mission to support research
The NASA website mentions that this analog mission will support research to develop methods and technologies to allow them to be proactive with potential problems on future human space missions to Mars and the Moon.
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. said Grace Douglas, lead scientist for NASAs Advanced Food Technology research effort at their Johnson Space Center.
APPLICATION CRITERIA
NASA is looking for US citizens, who are non-smokers, age 30 to 55 years old, and proficient in English. It doesn’t end there, applicants with a STEM master’s degree or sufficient experience piloting an aircraft.
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The STEM degrees mentioned are engineering, mathematics, biological, physical and computer science, with two years professional experience in a STEM field. A person with a completed medical degree can also apply as well as people who have completed military officer training.
