Anyone in NJ want to volunteer for simulated mission to Mars?

Who wants to play astronaut but without all that pesky danger?

NASA is looking for volunteers to take part in a simulated mission to Mars. This is not a joke.

The upside

You will be helping to determine protocol for an eventual, actual Mars mission.

You will be advancing science.

You can easily write a book afterwards and possibly make some serious coin.

You could make new lifelong friends as you’ll be part of a four-person crew living together in a 1,700 square foot 3D-printed area called Mars Dune Alpha.

You’ll do simulated spacewalks, operate robots, maintain a habitat and grow crops.

manjik

The downside

You’ll be giving up an entire year of your life.

You’ll have to move to Johnson Space Center in Houston and live there.

If those three other Marsmates you’ll be living with are the worst people ever you’re in it for a year.

Should this sound interesting you can apply here. The deadline for applications is April 2 of this year.

rajeshbac

Now there’s more. Lots of qualifications you’ll have to meet. You have to be a healthy U.S. citizen or permanent resident. You must be between 30 and 55 years old. You have to be proficient in English in order to communicate with mission control and the crew.

Now here’s the big one.

A master’s degree in a STEM field such as engineering, mathematics, or biological, physical or computer science from an accredited institution with a minimum of two years of professional STEM experience or at least one thousand hours piloting an aircraft is required.

SKY2014

Okay okay, so that leaves most of us out. Sounded cool for a hot minute there didn’t it?

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