Volunteers Ending Yearlong Mission in Mars Dune Alpha Habitat

NASA is gathering important baseline data and information that will help guide planning for the first human-crewed mission to Mars through its “analog” Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) ground-based missions. 

The first of three such missions in the Mars Dune Alpha habitat will come to an end July 6, 2024, when the volunteer crew emerges from the habitat after a year-long test of living and working in an isolated environment.

The habitat is a 3D printed structure built to resemble an actual habitat that would be constructed and used on Mars.

It has 1,700 square feet of separate spaces for living and working, a medical bay, and a galley and food growing areas.

The four crew members were recruited from the public to live for a year in conditions that resemble what an actual mission crew might experience on Mars. 

They were put through simulated Mars mission operations such as maintaining their habitat and its equipment, Marswalks, and growing vegetables to supplement the shelf-stable food provisions.

They were also subjected to anticipated stressors including the 4-25 minute delay each way when communicating with Earth, isolation, menu fatigue, and limited resources. The data will provide NASA information and valuable insights to assess the crew’s physical and behavioral health, performance, and to evaluate the food systems.

The crew will exit the habitat at 5 pm EDT at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

FMI:  www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/chapea/, www.nasa.gov/analog-missions/