The Austrian Space Forum is hosting a Mars simulation project in an effort to make living on the red planet a reality.
With SpaceX’s recent success in launching Falcon Heavy, Elon Musk’s ambition to colonize Mars is resonating loudly with other researchers.
The four-week long mission is based in Dhofar, Oman. The Arab country will simulate conditions on Mars, while a support centre in Innsbruck, Austria, mimics Earth.
More than 200 scientists from 25 countries will conduct experiments in addition to testing equipment and materials.
Six “analogue astronauts” were chosen from five different countries. Astronauts will carry out tasks in Mars spacesuits, which take more than two hours to put on and weigh close to 100 pounds.
Using seismic waves produced by pounding a hammer into the desert ground is an experiment the astronauts have carried out to look for subsurface water, the space forum says.