2023-06-17 07:03:58
The nine women who embarked on the ‘Hypatia’ mission have returned after spending 12 days in the desert of Utah, United States. There, they have recreated the conditions of the planet Mars and have survived with 13 liters of water a daywhen the mean is 10 times more.
The mission named ‘Hypatia’, in honor of a fifth-century philosopher, was intended to recreate what life would be like on Mars and inspire more female vocations to engage in research.
Mission ‘Hypatia’
The group of Catalan scientists spent 12 days at the analogue station ‘Mars Research Desert Station’ (MDRS), located in the desert of Utah, United States, where they have become the first Spanish women who have ‘traveled’ to Mars.
Two years of preparation in which they have trained to live under extreme conditions and have exercised with mental and physical activities. One of her members is an elite athlete and before going on the mission she was teaching her companions her habits with the aim of not losing “neither tone nor muscle mass in such a small environment.”
only 3 showers
The crew has had to adapt to the planet and survive in the best possible way. Food has been dehydrated, tomatoes have been grown in a garden and the amount of water per day has been limited to 13 liters per person. Mariona Badonas, an astrophysicist, has commented on her experience. “You are isolated in the middle of the desert with very few resources and if you have a problem, only you and your colleagues can try to fix it”, stressed Badonas.
“When the days go by you have so much in your head that you are on Mars that you already react as if you were there,” said Cesca Cufí, an aerospace engineer, to which she added that they had “half a cherry tomato per day“.
An objective
NASA has calculated that in the year 2023 the first manned mission to Marsalthough beyond the scientific aspect, the group of scientists had another mission: “The promotion of scientific vocations and the visibility of female references”, Mariona Badosas has pointed out.
There are already many women who want to sign up for the next mission, which will be called ‘Hypatia 2‘, and it will be done in 2025.
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