Mars Desert Research Station Simulates Mars Base

An anonymous reader writes "Placing humans on Mars will be an extraordinary feat in itself, not to mention even living in such a harsh environment. To help train future astronauts to sustain life on Mars, the Mars Society has created the Mars Desert Research Station. The Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) is one of four planned simulated Mars habitats (or Mars Analogue Research Station Programme) maintained by the Mars Society. Crews sign up for two week shifts during the winter months (it's too hot in the summer for pleasant simulation). Crews are not paid during their time at the station, but do get valuable experience."

3D mockups of the mars base facilities

[screenbert]

"Explore Mars now" has a great 3D mockup of all the Bunks, Galleys, wardrooms and other parts that would make up a Mars base. http://www.exploremarsnow.org/ [exploremarsnow.org]

I look forward to this moving to completion so I can juggle on Mars too. :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvp8m8CqIDc [youtube.com]

Chuck Norris was the first one to Mars, that's why there are no signs of life.

Re:Wait another 20 years

[jae471]

Arctic simulation isn't that far off. Any martian base would need to be near a water supply, which are most accessible at the poles. Only problem is on Mars, Arctic Winter is 11 months instead of 6.

Re:Wait another 20 years

[smoker2]

Of course there is. Even on earth we have a day side and a night side. Neither is permanently in the same place, just the same as on mars. Otherwise it wouldn't be day or night would it ?

You can simulate the night side or winter of mars by going to antarctica, and the day side or summer by going to an earth desert in winter, maybe peru or the steppes of Russia. Nobody said you have to do them both twice a day !
Plus the maximum temp. on mars is around 20C not 0C, and the minimums can reach -140C.

Re:Wait another 4 years

[Rich0]

I'm left wondering how they managed to get those astronauts off the moons surface. No construction, no launch facilities, no assembly needed.

Uh, the moon's gravity is significantly lower than that of Mars. The moon also lacks an atmosphere - the lunar landar had skin the thickness of aluminum foil at points which made it very light (it would have disintegrated if you tried to launch it from earth). The lack of atmosphere meant zero drag, and they could basically boost above the craters and immediately accellerate into an orbit. On a planet with an atmosphere you need to expend quite a bit of fuel just getting your ship above the bulk of the atmosphere before accellerating into orbit. The command module could also hang out very close to the lunar surface - in theory it could have been in orbit a few hundred feet off the ground as long as it cleared the craters. A Mars orbiter needs to be dozens of miles up at least.

While Mars is easier to launch from than Earth in terms of mass and atmosphere, it isn't nearly as easy as the moon. The atmosphere does make it easier to land on, however (you don't need to use fuel to completely decellerate like you do on the moon).

Now, you could park the return ship in orbit so that you only need to shuttle the crew itself up to Martian orbit. That would keep the size of the shuttle to a minimum (the only payload is the crew and any samples brought home - conceivably the samples could be taken in a different craft if they were heavy enough to warrant it). However, the rocket taking off from Mars is going to look a lot more like a Mercury capsule than the LEM.