Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun
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Have you been wondering what it’s like to spend 520 days in a little sealed facility in Russia? The Mars500 project has cooped up 6 volunteers with no access to the outside world in an experimental isolation facility in Moscow, measuring just 550 cubic meters, to simulate a trip to Mars.

The experiment started June 3, and already we have some fascinating snapshots of what the volunteers are getting up to. In this gallery, the men play Wii, do chores, play-fight, study Chinese, and even man the “spaceship” controls once in a while.

That Wang Yue in particular seems like quite a card.

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

All Geared Up to Take On Hostile Martians

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

The Crew Shows Off Their Drug Collection

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Clowning Around With Vital Medical Supplies

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

The Red Glasses Really Make It Look Like Mars

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Wang Yue Teaches Romain Charles to Write Chinese

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

The Crew Rocks Out

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Enjoying Some Down-Time

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

We Are Not Sure What This Face Scanner Is For

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Vacuuming Out the Passage Between Two Modules

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Crewman Yue Seems to Be Functioning Correctly

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

One Day’s Rations for One Crewman

Spending a Year and a Half in Martian Isolation Looks Kind of Fun

Pretending to Fly the Spaceship