In its latest round of cuts, the foundation cut its applicant pool
from 660 to 100 finalists on Tuesday. More than 200,000 people across
the globe originally applied when Mars One founder Bas Lansdorp first announced intentions to send what would be humanity’s first mission to the Red Planet by 2025.
The organization plans to send an initial four settlers to the planet
to establish a permanent human settlement in the next decade then
continue to shuttle people out every few years. The colony will
supposedly include livable habitats, greenhouses, rovers and everything
else a human would need to survive life on the barren, oxygen-free
wasteland.
The remaining finalists are equally divided between men and women
with 39 from the Americas, 31 from Europe, 16 from Asia, seven from
Africa and seven from Oceania. The selection process for the latest
round consisted of interviews with the organization’s chief medical
officer Norbert Kraft, who asked each of the candidates to demonstrate
their team spirit, motivation and understanding of the risks, according
to the announcement.
In order to choose the final four candidates, Lansdorp has said that he wants to run a televised reality show-style competition
where teams of four compete in challenges that test their ability to
withstand Mars-like conditions, and the world will vote to decide the
winners. Advertising revenue from the competition will go toward
defraying some of the monumental cost of the mission, which will also be
supplemented by crowdfunding and private contributions.
Plenty of obstacles stand in the way of the mission.
Plenty of obstacles stand in the way of the mission.
Aside from the massive amount of funding needed to make such lofty
ambitions a reality, there are technical hurdles, health concerns and
legal issues to consider.
Lansdorp has pegged the price tag of the first mission at $6 billion, but many have called that number into question. For perspective, NASA’s Orion mission to Mars is expected to cost at least $100 billion.
Mars One also alludes to using the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket as a
launcher, but it has yet to lock down a deal with the company.
A damning report
released by MIT researchers last fall also poked holes in the science
of the mission. The study’s authors analyzed the equipment plans
outlined by the organization and estimated that the Mars One settlers
would suffocate or starve within 68 days.
The upcoming round of competition will narrow the field to up to 24
would-be explorers through group challenges and more interviews. After
that, the final 24 will be put through training at a replica of the Mars
colony on Earth. A full list of candidates still competing for a spot
can be found here.
Source Article from http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AscensionEarth2012/~3/gRU0_bVzoS8/mars-one-mission-cuts-candidate-pool.html
Mars One mission cuts candidate pool down to 100 aspiring colonists
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