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| Nasa starts year-long isolation to simulate life on Mars | Nasa starts year-long isolation to simulate life on Mars |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A team of Nasa recruits has begun living in a dome near a barren volcano in Hawaii to simulate what life would be like on Mars. | A team of Nasa recruits has begun living in a dome near a barren volcano in Hawaii to simulate what life would be like on Mars. |
| The isolation experience, which will last a year starting on Friday, will be the longest of its type attempted. | The isolation experience, which will last a year starting on Friday, will be the longest of its type attempted. |
| Experts estimate that a human mission to the Red Planet could take between one and three years. | Experts estimate that a human mission to the Red Planet could take between one and three years. |
| The six-strong team will live in close quarters under the dome, without fresh air, fresh food or privacy. | The six-strong team will live in close quarters under the dome, without fresh air, fresh food or privacy. |
| They closed themselves away at 15:00 local time on Friday (01:00 GMT Saturday). | They closed themselves away at 15:00 local time on Friday (01:00 GMT Saturday). |
| A journey outside the dome - which measures only 36ft (11m) in diameter and is 20ft (6m) tall - will require a spacesuit. | A journey outside the dome - which measures only 36ft (11m) in diameter and is 20ft (6m) tall - will require a spacesuit. |
| A French astrobiologist, a German physicist and four Americans - a pilot, an architect, a journalist and a soil scientist - make up the Nasa team. | |
| The men and women will each have a small sleeping cot and a desk inside their rooms. Provisions include powdered cheese and canned tuna. | The men and women will each have a small sleeping cot and a desk inside their rooms. Provisions include powdered cheese and canned tuna. |
| Missions to the International Space Station last six months. The US space agency has recently conducted four-month and eight-month-long isolation experiments. | Missions to the International Space Station last six months. The US space agency has recently conducted four-month and eight-month-long isolation experiments. |
| While others focus on the technical and scientific challenges of the journey, the isolation experiments address the human element of exploration and problems that arise living in tight quarters. | While others focus on the technical and scientific challenges of the journey, the isolation experiments address the human element of exploration and problems that arise living in tight quarters. |
| "I think one of the lessons is that you really can't prevent interpersonal conflicts. It is going to happen over these long-duration missions, even with the very best people," said Kim Binsted, a Nasa investigator. | "I think one of the lessons is that you really can't prevent interpersonal conflicts. It is going to happen over these long-duration missions, even with the very best people," said Kim Binsted, a Nasa investigator. |