# Will Mars Experiment Succeed or Fail? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 3, 2010, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794 "2010-06-03T16:56:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/21 "2010-06-04T02:11:12Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > I don’t know whether this will make it easier or harder on them. The real thing–the _knowledge_ you’re stuck in a capsule in the depths of interplanetary space, _no matter what_–might be a kind of stress that’s not really testable on the ground. As you say it works both ways. Knowing if things go bad, shit will certainly hit the fan is a stressor. On the other hand, knowing that if YOU cause things to go bad and shit hits the fan is very good motivator for YOU to behave properly in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/22 "2010-06-04T02:31:49Z")
Wouldn’t a lot of it depend on the crew accomodations? If it is some cramped one compartment Apollo-style capsule, sure, stir crazy they shall be in short order. But if there’s several compartments, perhaps including private sleeping berths which also allow for reading and perusing the internet and such in isolation, perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/23 "2010-06-04T02:41:57Z")
You got a very long ping from Mars orbit. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/24 "2010-06-04T03:37:03Z")
If Pauly Shore and the stoner Baldwin [can do it…](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bio-Dome) ---
**Author:** ![gravitycrash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@gravitycrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gravitycrash)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/25 "2010-06-04T04:04:32Z")
Humans are social animals but not that social. I voted someone will go batshit. I guess it could be different if they knew they were really going to Mars. It’s just too easy for someone to bail out knowing that it’s not real. ---
**Author:** ![CutterJohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@CutterJohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CutterJohn)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/26 "2010-06-04T04:40:14Z")
Its kind of pointless… These are 6 average men, who are NOT partaking in one of the grandest adventures mankind has ever undertook, but rather, are lab rats chimping for the whitecoats. A not so subtle difference, i think, and will heavily affect the participants mindsets. Also, whatever ‘work’ they find for these guys to do will probably be quite pointless makework, which will also have a negative impact. Unless they are smart and made the thing a(mostly) self contained mockup that they have to maintain and repair, but the illusion can only go so far. They should also, I feel, have a ‘vacation’ room, a respectably large(luxuriously so) room on the ship with some really nice things in it, wall to wall LCD monitors to show nice landscape scenes, maybe a nice hot bathtube, and importantly, a lock on the door. Because that much time spent on the ship together… you’re really going to need alone time. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/27 "2010-06-04T05:04:12Z")
> [@CutterJohn](#): > > Its kind of pointless.. These are 6 average men, who are NOT partaking in one of the grandest adventures mankind has ever undertook, but rather, are lab rats chimping for the whitecoats. > > A not so subtle difference, i think, and will heavily affect the participants mindsets. I disagree with the premise, but not the conclusion. Learning how people react in this situation will create valuable data about what sort of living space we could need, what time windows we have to operate in, what to screen for, what sort of entertainment to include, etc. It’s valuable research. But the fact that everyone will know it’s a simulation will affect their reactions. I could see this going either way though - people knowing that safety is on the other side of a hatch might actually be soothed to continue, whereas being stuck millions of miles from home with no recourse could be stressing. On the other hand, people might be able to suck it up and deal with any adversity knowing the greatness of their mission during the real deal. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/28 "2010-06-04T05:34:43Z")
Heh. I was watching a video about it on the ESA site and the cameras onboard, if I can believe the video, look just like HAL from 2001. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/29 "2010-06-04T11:20:05Z")
I think it’s going to be like any other social experiment or reality TV show. Everyone gets along great at the start, then slowly things deteriorate. Someone will eventually become annoying to the others and they will all pounce on him like wolves to a fresh kill. Then someone else will cross a line and they’re next, and so on, until they’re all ready to kill one another. I don’t think it’s possible to spend 24 hours a day for 520 days with anyone whether it’s ona mission to mars or otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/30 "2010-06-04T12:28:48Z")
> [@CutterJohn](#): > > maybe a nice hot bathtube, Wouldn’t work so well during the real thing, though. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/31 "2010-06-04T13:15:02Z")
Haven’t there been 8 month space missions already? If you can handle 8 months, ~2 years doesn’t seem _too_ bad. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/32 "2010-06-04T13:20:44Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > True, but in an actual deep space expedition every crewmember would duplicate the skills of _at least_ one other crewmember and any crewmember that becomes too sick or too badly injured to continue would have to be euthanized. And you are basing this on what? > [@rainy](#): > > I voted that they would succeed, but I do have some reservations. The people actually selected to go to Mars will have devoted their entire lives to achieving that goal. They will likely have the psychological advantage of that driving ambition that got them there in the first place. “Driving ambition” pretty much goes out the airlock around the middle of Day 4, and then you realize that you’re just a part of the machine. The ability to survive long duration confinement and the constant threat of hazard is innate mental stability combined with extensive training and conditioning to cope with any foreseeable emergency and contingency. As for the Mars 500 experiment, I suspect it will fail, although not perhaps for psychological conflicts between the crew but instead out of sheer boredom and depression. One of the many major challenges of long term space habitation is how to keep people happy and functional when they can’t see blue sky, swim in a lake, step out for a beer, or get more than a few dozen meters from their fellow crew. The need for novel stimulation exists in all intelligent animals, and for people suitable for manning a spacecraft and operating sophisticated equipment it is as strong a compulsion as any ambition. The excessive familiarity with the limited environment and other crew members places a heavy toll on psychological stability. That, and the smell. Submariners will know what I’m talking about. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/33 "2010-06-04T13:39:01Z")
Are they going to be dosed with sex-drive suppressants? If not, this is going to endup as The Beeftrain to Mars. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/34 "2010-06-04T13:39:18Z")
> [@](#): > > That, and the smell. Submariners will know what I’m talking about. Or people who’ve used a major metropolitan underground mass transit system 😉 Why did they make this experiment a sausagefest, again? ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/35 "2010-06-04T19:23:42Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > I don’t know whether this will make it easier or harder on them. The real thing–the _knowledge_ you’re stuck in a capsule in the depths of interplanetary space, _no matter what_–might be a kind of stress that’s not really testable on the ground. I dunno— I was thinking that the part of a real Mars mission that can’t be simulated might be the part that makes the difference in the end. That being-- on a real mission you _know_ you have to get through it. There IS no out. With the simulation, no matter how much you try to bury it away in your mind, you always know you can get out if you want to. And rather than making it easier to stay in the whole time, I think in a weird way, it actually makes it more difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/36 "2010-06-04T19:59:05Z")
> [@](#): > > I seem to recall a SF story in which a test crew in an earthbound vessel was elaborately deceived into thinking they were making the trip for real. Does that sound familiar to anyone else? That one does not to me, but this experiment reminds me of a different story: Going to Mars was routine, but there were special provisions. Upon returning to Earth, each member of the crew was assigned residence in geographically separate regions and they were not allowed ever to leave that region. The reason? The brass found out the hard way that without that provision, there was a chance one astronaut might bump into another on the street - the result is one would inevitably kill the other. Having been couped up so long with one another, every little gesture became annoying to each other - every toss of the hair, distictive sound when swallowing would drive each crazy (the only reason they didn’t kill each other sooner was the realization they all needed each other to survive). Does THAT one ring a bell? Can anyone remind me the author or the name of the story? Oh, and here’s hoping nothing like that happens to our earthbound crew! ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/37 "2010-06-04T20:11:48Z")
I voted that someone would go nuts and have to be removed, but I give the experiment about 40% probability of success. I would REALLY like to see multiple experiments run on this with various mixtures of ages, sexes, nationalities, and so on. No matter whether we go to Mars this decade or next century, the study of human interaction will need to be much better developed prior to the mission(s). I assume that this is not a biosphere type of experiment and that the life support systems will be the standard rebreathers without some fancy hydroponics. Come to think of it, I would really like to know more about this before commenting further. ETA: > [@](#): > > The Mars simulation is expected to last until November 2011, with the crew relying on supplies of food, equipment and other essentials packed inside their mock spaceship. Only electricity, water and some air will be supplied from the outside, ESA officials said. ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2010, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/38 "2010-06-04T22:50:14Z")
BTW the record stay in space is 437 days, by a Russian aboard Mir. > **[Valeri Polyakov](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valeri_Polyakov)** > > Valeri Vladimirovich Polyakov (Russian: Валерий Владимирович Поляков, born Valeri Ivanovich Korshunov, Russian: Валерий Иванович Коршунов, 27 April 1942 – 7 September 2022) was a Soviet and Russian cosmonaut. He is the record holder for the longest single stay in space, staying aboard the Mir space station for more than 14 months (437 days 18 hours) during one trip. His combined space experience was more than 22 months. > Selected as a cosmonaut in 1972, Polyakov made his first flight into spac... ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2010, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/39 "2010-06-05T08:34:08Z")
Wasn’t locking people in vaults for long periods of time to perform experiments on them the premise of the Fallout video games? ---
**Author:** ![charlie145](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@charlie145](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/charlie145)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2010, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794/40 "2010-06-05T09:19:23Z")
Channel 4 in the UK ran a reality TV show called [Space Cadets](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Cadets) where the contestants were tricked into thinking they had gone to Russia to train for a space trip and if I remember correctly they were tricked into thinking they had gone into low-earth orbit. They never actually left the UK. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-mars-experiment-succeed-or-fail/541794.md?page=3)