NASA's Simulated Mars Crew Marks One Year Inside Habitat, Exit Set for October 31
NASA said on October 19 that the four crew members of its simulated Mars mission have spent a full 365 days inside their habitat at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The mission, the second under the Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) program, runs 378 days: the crew entered on October 19, 2025, and is scheduled to exit on October 31, concluding the mission.
The crew members are Ross Elder, mission commander; Ellen Ellis, medical officer; Matthew Montgomery, science officer; and James Spicer, flight engineer. They have lived in the roughly 1,700-square-foot 3D-printed habitat known as Mars Dune Alpha, operating as though they were on the Red Planet: growing crops, managing limited resources, navigating communication delays with Earth, and conducting suited extravehicular activities on a simulated Martian surface. Throughout the year, their only contact with their families has been by email, subject to a Mars-like communication delay.
“We are extremely proud of the crew for their commitment and achievements over the last year on such a fast-paced, highly demanding mission,” said Grace Douglas, CHAPEA principal investigator. “The entire CHAPEA team is excited to congratulate the crew in person.” Michael Stenger, chief scientist for NASA’s Human Research Program, said the mission has been valuable in teaching the agency the requirements of year-long missions, including medical and psychological care delivered across communication delays, and that the knowledge will translate to a Moon base and beyond.
NASA said science teams will process the health and performance data collected on the crew, including how limited food and exercise systems affect mission objectives and how best to support crew decision-making with communication delays of up to 45 minutes each way. After exiting, the crew will reconnect with their families and then begin two weeks of post-mission evaluations and debriefs with NASA scientists. The October 31 egress ceremony will be streamed on NASA’s YouTube channel.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: CHAPEA第二次任务四名队员在栖息舱内合影（2026年3月14日，左起 Ellen Ellis、Ross Elder、James Spicer、Matthew Montgomery）。照片：美国国家航空航天局（NASA）官方发布，公共领域（NASA 图片编号 jsc2026e403170）／The CHAPEA Mission 2 crew poses inside the habitat on March 14, 2026 (from left: Ellen Ellis, Ross Elder, James Spicer, and Matthew Montgomery). Photo: NASA, public domain (NASA image jsc2026e403170)
