Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog

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The Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog is a series of missions conducted by NASA simulating missions on Mars. It consists of 3 missions, the first of which began on June 25, 2023.[1] The mission is contained in a hangar at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.[2] Efforts to mimic a real Mars mission include a 22-minute delay in communications,[3] resources limitations,[4] simulated equipment failures, and simulated spacewalks.[5]

Habitat[edit]

Living quarters for the crew members.
The exterior of Mars Dune Alpha simulates the surface of Mars.

The habitat, known as Mars Dune Alpha, is a 1700 square foot 3D-printed area designed to simulate the type of structure that would be built on a mission to Mars.[6] It includes crew quarters, an exercise area,[7] a work room, a recreation area, and a crop area.[3] The crop area has been used to grow peppers, tomatoes, and other vegetables.[8] The exterior of the habitat simulates the surface of Mars complete with a backdrop of cliffs and a ground made of red soil, which on a real mission to Mars could be used to 3D print the habitat.[9] To leave the hangar out to the exterior, crew members go through an airlock.[7]

Missions[edit]

The CHAPEA project consists of three missions. NASA began looking for applicants for CHAPEA 1 in 2023 with the following qualifications:[10]

  1. Be either a permanent resident or a citizen of the United States
  2. Be between 30 and 55 years old
  3. Have either 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time on a jet aircraft or have two years of experience in a related STEM field
  4. Pass the NASA long-duration flight astronaut physical exam
  5. Have a master's degree in STEM, two years of work toward a doctoral program in a STEM field, a M.D. or D.O. degree, or have completed a pilot school program.

CHAPEA 1[edit]

The first CHAPEA mission began on June 25, 2023, with four crew members: Kelly Haston, a research scientist and the mission's commander, Ross Brockwell, a structural engineer and public works administrator, Nathan Jones, an emergency medicine physician, and Anca Selariu, a microbiologist.[11][12] It is scheduled to conclude on July 6, 2024, lasting 378 days.[8][13]

CHAPEA 2 and 3[edit]

The second CHAPEA mission is scheduled to begin in the Spring of 2025, with the application process being open from February 16 to April 2, 2024. The third and final scheduled CHAPEA mission is scheduled to begin at some point in 2026.[5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "CHAPEA Mission 1 - NASA". Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  2. ^ Strickland, Ashley (2024-02-21). "Want to live like a Martian? New NASA mission puts out call for applicants". CNN. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  3. ^ a b Dinner, Josh (2023-07-04). "Tour the mock Mars habitat where 4 NASA analog astronauts will spend the next year (video)". Space.com. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  4. ^ "Martians Wanted: NASA Opens Call for Simulated Yearlong Mars Mission". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  5. ^ a b "About CHAPEA - NASA". Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  6. ^ "NASA'S Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog & Mars Dune Alpha Habitat - NASA". Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  7. ^ a b "Inside Mars Dune Alpha, NASA's martian simulation habitat". euronews. 2023-04-13. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  8. ^ a b "First NASA Mars Analog Crew Passes Mission Halfway Mark - NASA". 2024-01-11. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  9. ^ "Manufacturing on Mars with 3D Printing". www.techbriefs.com. 2022-12-01. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  10. ^ "How to Apply - NASA". Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  11. ^ "NASA Selects Participants for One-Year Mars Analog Mission - NASA". 2023-06-29. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  12. ^ "Four researchers on Earth are spending a year on 'Mars'". 2023-10-03. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  13. ^ Rawat, Sudeep Singh. "NASA CHAPEA 1 mission: Locked volunteers inside Mars simulator for 378 days". Business Standard. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
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