Mars research crew emerges after 8 months of isolation
September 17, 2017 at 9:19 p.m.
| Updated September 17, 2017 at 9:19 p.m.
by
Associated Press
In this 2017 photo released by the University of Hawaii crew members of Mission V, walk up hill with a cart next to the university’s facility Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) at the Mauna Loa volcano, Big Island, Hawaii. After eight months of living in isolation on a remote Hawaii volcano, six NASA-backed space psychology research subjects will emerge from their Mars-like habitat on Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017. The participants are in a study designed to better understand the psychological impacts of a long-term manned mission to space on astronauts. NASA hopes to send humans to Mars by the 2030s. (University of Hawaii via AP)
HONOLULU (AP) - Six NASA-backed research subjects who have been living in a Mars-like habitat on a remote Hawaii volcano since January have emerged from isolation.
After eating mostly freeze-dried food, they feasted Sunday on fresh-picked tropical fruit, vegetables and a fluffy egg strata.
The four men and two women are part of a study designed to better understand the psychological impacts of long-term space travel on astronauts.
The data they produced will help NASA select individuals and groups with the right mix of traits to best cope with the stress, isolation and danger of a two-to-three year trip to Mars.
The U.S. space agency hopes to send humans to the red planet by the 2030s.
