NASA's year-long Mars simulation to begin in Houston
NASA is about to launch a year-long Mars simulation at Houston's Johnson Space Center, where four volunteers—Ross Elder, Ellen Ellis, Matthew Montgomery, and James Spicer—will live in a 3D-printed habitat called Mars Dune Alpha until October 31, 2026.
The mission is part of NASA's CHAPEA program and aims to see how people handle the challenges of deep-space travel.
Preparing for the real thing
The crew will face life with limited resources and isolation and communication delays—pretty close to what astronauts might experience on Mars.
Their days will be filled with simulated spacewalks, running robotic equipment, growing veggies indoors, and testing out new tech for future missions.
Insights from this experiment are expected to help NASA get ready for real journeys to the Red Planet down the line.