Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog
{{Short description|Series of NASA missions}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
The Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) is a series of missions conducted by NASA simulating missions on Mars. It consists of three missions, the first of which began on June 25, 2023.{{Cite web |title=CHAPEA Mission 1 |website=NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/chapea/chapea-mission-1/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}} The mission is contained in a hangar at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.{{Cite news |last=Strickland |first=Ashley |date=2024-02-21 |title=Want to live like a Martian? New NASA mission puts out call for applicants |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/21/world/nasa-mars-chapea-second-mission-scn/index.html |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=CNN |language=en}} Efforts to mimic a real Mars mission include a 22-minute delay in communications,{{Cite web |last=Dinner |first=Josh |date=2023-07-04 |title=Tour the mock Mars habitat where 4 NASA analog astronauts will spend the next year (video) |url=https://www.space.com/nasa-mock-mars-dune-alpha-chapea-habitat-video-tour |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=Space.com |language=en}} resources limitations,{{Cite press release |title=Martians Wanted: NASA Opens Call for Simulated Yearlong Mars Mission |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/martians-wanted-nasa-opens-call-for-simulated-yearlong-mars-mission-302064204.html |access-date=2024-03-08 |date=February 16, 2024 |website=PR Newswire |language=en}} simulated equipment failures, and simulated spacewalks.{{Cite web |title=About CHAPEA |website=NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/chapea/about-chapea/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |date=February 14, 2024 |language=en-US}}
Habitat
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.{{Cite web |title=NASA'S Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog & Mars Dune Alpha Habitat - NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/chapea/habitat/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}} It includes crew quarters, an exercise area,{{Cite web |date=2023-04-13 |title=Inside Mars Dune Alpha, NASA’s martian simulation habitat |url=https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/04/13/what-will-life-be-like-for-astronauts-on-mars-nasa-unveils-a-simulation-habitat |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=euronews |language=en}} a work room, a recreation area, and a crop area. The crop area has been used to grow peppers, tomatoes, and other vegetables.{{Cite web |date=2024-01-11 |title=First NASA Mars Analog Crew Passes Mission Halfway Mark - NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/missions/analog-field-testing/chapea/first-nasa-mars-analog-crew-passes-mission-halfway-mark/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}} 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.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-12-01 |title=Manufacturing on Mars with 3D Printing |url=https://www.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/47130-manufacturing-on-mars-with-3d-printing |access-date=2024-03-08 |website=www.techbriefs.com |language=en}} To leave the hangar out to the exterior, crew members go through an airlock.
Missions
The CHAPEA project consists of three missions.
= CHAPEA 1 =
NASA began looking for applicants for CHAPEA 1 in 2023 with the following qualifications:{{Cite web |title=How to Apply - NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/chapea/participate/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}}
- Be either a permanent resident or a citizen of the United States
- Be between 30 and 55 years old
- 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
- Pass the NASA long-duration flight astronaut physical exam
- 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.
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.{{Cite web |date=2023-06-29 |title=NASA Selects Participants for One-Year Mars Analog Mission - NASA |url=https://www.nasa.gov/missions/analog-field-testing/chapea/nasa-selects-participants-for-one-year-mars-analog-mission/ |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2023-10-03 |title=Four researchers on Earth are spending a year on ‘Mars’ |url=https://www.snexplores.org/article/mars-on-earth-nasa-chapea-mission |access-date=2024-03-08 |language=en-US}} The mission concluded July 6, 2024,{{cite web|url=https://time.com/6995548/nasa-crew-earthbound-simulated-mars-habitat-emerge-after-year/ |first=Brian |last=P. D. Hannon |website=Time |date=July 7, 2024 |title=NASA's Earthbound Simulated Mars Habitat Crew Emerge |access-date=July 9, 2024}} with a total duration time of 378 days.{{Cite web |last=Rawat |first=Sudeep Singh |title=NASA CHAPEA 1 mission: Locked volunteers inside Mars simulator for 378 days |url=https://www.business-standard.com/technology/tech-news/nasa-chapea-1-mission-locked-volunteers-inside-mars-simulator-for-378-days-123071300655_1.html |access-date=8 March 2024 |website=Business Standard}}