Volunteers complete 500-day Mars mission

what a waste of time. there's different between "you know that someone will come to safe you in time if accident happen" and "you know that no one will be able to come to safe you in time if accident happen".

I agree, deep down they all knew they could open a door if someone got really ill. Not an option in space. Wonder if they simulated experiments in their simulated mission

They should of been tricked into thinking they were shut in there without any assistance. This is extremely ineffective without that emotional aspect.

I don't know why everyone thinks this is a waste of time, how else do you expect them to do these preliminary experiments?

I think it was pointless re seeing how the crew managed being in a confined space. Crew members would not be under the type of pressure or stress like they would be if they had been in space.

Well they obviously aren't going to send 6 people into space for 500+ days as a preliminary test. It was designed to see the psychological effects of 6 people being confined in such a small space for so long. And i agree they wouldnt have been under such pressure as if they were in space, but again, that wasn't the real point of the experiment. It was about the isolation, and being in a confined space with a number of other people and seeing if they would clash, fall into madness, etc. Either way, after a time it obviously became more and more real for them. For instance, when they were 'landi... [More]

They also only had the supplies to survive on that were given to them at the beginning. We can now be sure that we can pack enough food, recycle enough water and filter the required air in a small space for that length of time.