UNB students heads simulated Mars mission in Canadas Arctic

FREDERICTON - Most earthlings won't visit outer space in their lifetime, but Melissa Battler isn't like most people.

The ambitious University of New Brunswick student's dream to become an astronaut seems written in the stars.

She's commanding a crew of seven on a Mars simulation mission 1,450 kilometres from the North Pole. The research project mirrors what life might be like on the red planet. It delves into the psychology of living in isolation and surviving the harsh environment.

''We're in a very barren, desolate and rocky area on the edge of an impact crater where we've done everything we can to make it feel as though we're living on Mars,'' Battler said from her station on Devon Island in the Arctic.

''There are bad days and good, but the ultimate goal is to get humans to Mars and we'll do anything to get closer to that goal.''

Battler was born in Kitchener, Ont., where she spent her childhood exploring the world around her. She had a passion for collecting rocks and a fascination with the stars that never waned as she grew up.

''I remember in high school working on a project about the chemistry of rocket fuel and becoming totally interested in space travel and how space shuttles work,'' she said. ''I made my mind up then I was going to become an astronaut.''

Battler is enrolled at UNB for her masters degree in planetary geology at the university's Planetary and Space Science Centre. While at UNB, she found a way to simulate soil and rocks from the moon for use in the development of lunar drilling and excavation equipment for future missions to space to find ways to support a human colony on the moon.

Battler is also president of the Mars Society of Canada and is working on developing curriculum and documentation for the NASA Mars Society astronaut training program.

''I want to go into space, but failing that I'd like to train future astronauts and future generations to help them get to Mars.''

In May, Battler and seven other like-minded researchers left for the Arctic to live for four months as part of the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station crew.

''We've imitated everything that we know about Mars, except for its thin atmosphere,'' Battler said. ''Our home is not a pressurized habitat, but it's a two-storey, eight-metre-diametre tuna can with air locks that we have to enter and exit through with space suits for exploring the surface.''

Battler said the crew is living in Martian time with 24 hours of sunlight forcing them to cover up windows when they want to sleep.

And since Mars doesn't rotate as quickly as the Earth, days on the red planet are almost an hour longer, which makes communication with researchers overseeing the project difficult, she said.

Battler said the purpose of simulating the full Mars experience is to see what it's like to conduct fieldwork under the same constraints.

Frigid temperatures, changes in seasons, bulky space suits and limited food, water and supplies in the Arctic are the same problems an astronaut would experience on Mars, Battler said.

''To conserve water we can shower only once a week, but we use baby wipes to keep from being stinky. We are also restricted to eating only shelf-storable foods like freeze-dried or dehydrated vegetables, cured meats, and canned foods.''

In addition to studying the mental and physical effects of life on Mars, the crew is drilling daily into the Arctic permafrost to figure out how and where life might be able to survive on Mars.

''From our window there is no sign of life or water, but if you walk slowly and look carefully you can see both,'' Battler said. ''It's our hope that this research will give us hints as to where we should explore first for life when we get to Mars.''

The Mars crew members will remain in the Arctic until Aug. 25, when they will travel to the International Mars Society Convention in Los Angeles to report their findings.







19:12ET 17-07-07