The planned manned mission to planet Mars may be far ahead but NASA already makes the necessary preparations.

On Friday, six individuals went into voluntary isolation in a cramped dome on the Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii to simulate a manned mission to the red planet.

Living in the tiny dome for one year may seem like an easy mission but members of the team, which include a German physicist, a French astrobiologist, American pilot, soil scientist, architect and doctor/ journalist, would have to live with plenty of restrictions.

They would have to endure living literally cramped together in an abode known as Hawaii Space Analog and Simulation  (HI-SEAS), which measures 36-foot-wide and 20-foot-tall.

Although the volunteers each have a tiny room with enough space for a desk and a sleeping cot, they need to wear a spacesuit everytime they go outside. They do not also have access to comfort food and have to bear consuming foods that are no longer fresh such as powdered cheese and tuna.

Read the article “Six Scientists Getting Taste of Life on Mars by Living in a Tiny Dome in Hawaii” on techtimes.com.