Mars500 participant Diego Urbina (follow him on Twitter at @diegou) provides a tour inside the Mars500 facilities – see how the crew are living and working for the next 17 months in isolation. On June 3, 2010 Urbina and five fellow crewmates from Europe, Russia and China embarked on a 520-day mock mission to Mars, and are living in a crew module in a warehouse in Moscow. See our preview article here.
9 Replies to “Video Tour of the Mars500 Habitat”
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Without including Eddie the shipboard computer or Lisa Nowak or other means of challenging team discipline and professionalism, it’s difficult to see what’s being tested here. It’s a bit like reality TV meets the Department of Corrections only no one can be voted off the island.
Plant growth with full spectrum lights, of course(!) would add ambiance and oxygen, and maybe some fresh veggies? A shower ‘only every ten days’ will no doubt be the most difficult of deprivations? I, for one, do not eat much ‘red meat’ – maybe once or twice a year(?) and as a result have noticed the VAST difference in body AND bodily wastes odors by those who do…
Hope Diego & the guys can make it, the wood paneling would drive me nuts.
I’d prefer large wall sized photographs of beautiful landscapes, anything extra can be white to increase the space size visually, or even better still large wall sized monitors showing landscapes.
And how about a few plants hanging about, I don’t how this would work in space but there is got to be a way.
Best of Luck to them.
A lot of plants you might grow will struggle for want of sunlight and won’t germinate in a straight line if grown from seed in a zero gravity. You might also consider growing them for food rather than decoration.
So no Asparagus and no live stock then…..good point. You’ll have to get used to a lot of Soy protein or similar. You could grow Beans for carbohydrates, although that can be problematic too in a confined space.
Research and extensive experience has shown that most people like natural materials in the construction, which is why wood panelling was chosen.
Decorations are an individual choice, and I am sure that the crew had had input into the current decorations. Over time I am sure the crew will further personalise their own and communal spaces.
Plants will be gown in a separate module. Not much to see yet because it is early days.
Here’s how my log entry would look like for day 1:
Day 1: Meet and greet. Convinced my fellow cohabitators to rip all the wood paneling off and paint the walls white. Everyone reports the feeling less claustrophobic.
Cut rectangular window holes into th walls. Hung giant LCD screens inset into the walls, hooked up to computers, and set them up to play scenic vistas in looping intervals.
Got on with business.
Let’s see, claustrophobic = irrational fear of santa claus. Surely Mars500 doesn’t have a chimney, that would make as much sense as installing a chimney at NEEMO.
Uncle Fred…
Exactly my thoughts. I don’t understand why they didn’t add windows or monitors to view “simulated” space around them. Simulating windows, or monitors connected to external cameras.
Interesting there are no women. This is likely going to be the biggest challenge for them. This isn’t just about sex, holding hands, sitting together and other light physical contact I believe is needed. This would have been the deal breaker for me to participate.
I think there needs to be more “simulated systems” on board. In order to keep themselves sane, they could respond to emergencies; both real and drills. It also becomes more challenging, when you have to get directions from Earth, and communications take 30+minutes.