Vienna [Austria], October 14: Researchers are to play the role of astronauts in simulations of future stays on the Moon and Mars in their most extensive international mission to date.
Over the next two weeks, around 70 men and women will live in 17 habitats around the world, which in some respects resemble a stay on another planet, according to the Austrian Space Forum (ÖWF), which is acting as the control centre for the launch.
The mission, coordinated from Vienna, is led by 44-year-old German astronaut Anika Mehlis.
The researchers - known as "analogue astronauts" - simulate space explorations on Earth in order to gain important experience for future manned missions. They wear special space suits when outdoors.
Key aims include investigating how a heterogeneous team cooperates under extreme stress, and how the team members deal with isolation. ÖWF Director Gernot Gromer said the teams are living together in confined spaces in the Czech Republic or Poland, for example in a bunker or a diving capsule.
Source: Qatar Tribune