ESA 'Cosmonauts' ready for Mars testA Belgian, two Frenchmen and a Colombian-Italian have agreed to be locked away in steel containers for 18 months to simulate a mission to Mars.
Their self-imposed exile will test the physical and mental requirements of ultra-long duration spaceflight.
The Europeans will join a predominantly Russian crew for the Mars500 project, which is due to start in May.
All the food and water needed for the "journey" will have to be loaded into the "spacecraft" before "departure". They will even carry out a simulated landing procedure.
After about 250 days, the crew will be split in two and three "cosmonauts" will move into a separate container to walk on the "surface of the Red Planet" wearing modified Russian Orlan spacesuits.
"I think you've got to be a little bit crazy to undertake this venture, but it's a healthy craziness," said Diego Urbina, a 26-year-old electronic engineer from Italy.
"I will definitely miss my family and friends, and Nature itself - all the things we take for granted here on Earth, such as the internet and girls. That's something I'll definitely miss."
Well, how human can you get? How were these people selected? Were they rejects from Big Brother?
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