After 8 Months In Hawaiian Isolation, Mars Crew Emerge

A crew of two women and four men took part in the study, which was designed to “identify psychological and psychosocial factors” that would be important for long-duration space exploration missions, such as a mission to Mars.

The astronauts” have emerged from their isolation on a remote Hawaiian volcano after completing an eight-month study into how humans would cope living in a Mars-like environment.

The research subjects entered the geodesic dome atop Mauna Loa, which is the largest active volcano in the world and one of the five forming the island of Hawaii, on 19 January.

After eight months eating freeze-dried and canned food, they exited the experiment on Sunday with smiles on their faces to feast on fresh tropical fruits, vegetables and fluffy egg strata.

They were quarantined, with communications to the research team at the University of Hawaii on a 20-minute delay, the time it takes for signals to get from Mars to Earth.

They were also made to perform tasks and play games to test stress levels and emotional well-being, and kept logs about their feelings.

Specially designed sensors monitored voice levels and their proximity to research colleagues within the 1,200 square-foot (111 square metre) living space.

Part of the experiment was to figure out crew selection issues when it comes to long-term space exploration missions.

University of Hawaii professor Kim Binsted said: “We’ve learned, for one thing, that conflict, even in the best of teams, is going to arise.

“So what’s really important is to have a crew that, both as individuals and a group, is really resilient, is able to look at that conflict and come back from it.”

The mission was the fifth in a series of six experiments at the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) which received $2.5m funding from NASA.

NASA intends to send a team of astronauts to Mars by 2030.

One of the research subjects and the team’s tech specialist, Laura Lark, said she believed “long-term space travel is absolutely possible”.

“There are certainly technical challenges to be overcome,” she said. “There are certainly human factors to be figured out.

“That’s part of what HI-SEAS is for. But I think that overcoming those challenges is just a matter of effort. We are absolutely capable of it.”