Inside a Utah desert facility making ready people for all times on Mars

Hidden among the many majestic canyons of the Utah desert, about 7 miles from the closest city, is a small analysis facility meant to organize people for all times on Mars.

The Mars Society, a nonprofit group that runs the Mars Desert Analysis Station, or MDRS, invited CNBC to shadow certainly one of its analog crews on a current mission.

“MDRS is the very best analog astronaut surroundings,” mentioned City Koi, who served as well being and security officer for Crew 315. “The terrain is extraordinarily much like the Mars terrain and the protocols, analysis, science and engineering that happens right here is similar to what we’d do if we had been to journey to Mars.”

SpaceX CEO and Mars advocate Elon Musk has mentioned his firm can get people to Mars as early as 2029.

The 5-person Crew 315 spent two weeks residing on the analysis station following the identical procedures that they’d on Mars.

David Laude, who served because the crew’s commander, described a typical day.

“So all of us collect round by 7 a.m. round a typical desk within the higher deck and we have now breakfast,” he mentioned. “Round 8:00 we have now our first assembly of the day the place we plan out the day. After which within the morning, we often have an EVA of two or three folks and often one other one within the afternoon.”

An EVA refers to extravehicular exercise. In NASA communicate, EVAs seek advice from spacewalks, when astronauts depart the pressurized house station and should put on spacesuits to outlive in house.

“I feel essentially the most difficult factor about these analog missions is simply getting right into a rhythm. … Though right here the danger is decrease, on Mars performing these every day duties are what retains us alive,” mentioned Michael Andrews, the engineer for Crew 315.

Watch the video to seek out out extra.