PHOTOS: Mars Society research site brings Red Planet experience to Earthlings in Utah
HANKSVILLE, Utah (KUTV) — It may be the closest people can get to experiencing life on Mars.
A few miles off the less-traveled roads near Hanksville, there’s a privately-funded research station where people get a taste of what it’s like to live on the red planet.
It’s not officially a NASA project, but NASA has seen this site and donated a small grant. Also – if it seems far-fetched to you, NASA hopes to send a crew to Mars in the next 15 years.
Executive Director James Burk has been with the Mars Society since the nonprofit started back in 1998, but for the past few weeks, it’s been his first time working as a commander of a mission at the Mars Desert Research Station.
He says the program chose southern Utah because it’s what they call a "Mars analog," meaning it’s a place on Earth that has a similar terrain to Mars.
The Mars Society has a similar research facility in arctic Canada, which is analogous to the Red Planet's polar deserts.
“So we chose this station after a long process of scouting different locations around the United States,” Burk said. “I believe that we’re going to Mars someday, and I want to see it happen, and I want to do everything I can to help us get there.”
Anyone can apply to be a part of a Mars Society Mission, which lasts 12 days. The mission happening right now includes seven crew members who are from France, Canada, and the United States:
- James Burk (Crew Commander)
- Aline Decadi (Executive Officer + Crew Geologist)
- Cécile Renaud (Greenhab Officer + Crew Biologist)
- Julien Villa-Massone (Crew Engineer)
- Erin Kennedy (Crew Robotics Engineer)
- Audrey Derobertmasure (Medical Officer)
- Kris Davidson (Crew Journalist)
It’s “suspending reality” in a cost-effective way. Burk says, “Our simulated space suits weigh about 50 to 60 pounds. We use pelican cases, normal fans you’d use on a computer, and they have regular hoses you could get from Home Depot.”
Crews haven’t made it to Mars yet because - aside from the logistics of getting there - it's a very harsh environment.
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“It’s also very cold," Burk said. "The warmest it ever gets is just below freezing,."
The Mars Society brings together people from all over so they can prepare for what hurdles they might face while in Outer Space.
“If you were going to send a message to Mars right now, it would take about 14 minutes to get there," Burk said. "When we get communication from friends or family, we wait to respond, so that would simulate the delay we have on Mars.”
“We also survive off of dehydrated ingredients, shelf-stable food and fresh produce that we grow in the greenhouse," he added.
Burk said they have to get used to sleeping and working in confined spaces and they take quick showers to conserve water.
Also, they can’t go outside without their simulated space suits on. They wear them when they do their Extravehicular Activities, otherwise known as EVAs.
Most of the crew members on the current mission are at the Mars analog site for research projects they’re working on.
2News' Amanda Gilbert will be showing exactly what those projects are in Part 2 of this out-of-the-world Eye on Utah, airing on KUTV 2News on Thursday, May 18.
Anyone who wants to apply for a future mission can do so at marssociety.org. Donations to keep the missions going can be made at group's donation page.
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