Isolation and annoying co-workers: Solving the stress of a trip to Mars – Astronomy Magazine

We've added the arrow and "Earth" note to this view of Earth taken by the NASA Curiosity Mars rover. The original photograph is also in this article. Credit: NASA

Within the next few decades, NASA aims to land humans on the Moon, set up a lunar colony and use the lessons learned to send people to Mars as part of itsArtemis program.

While researchers know that space travel can stress space crew members both physically and mentally and test their ability to work together in close quarters, missions to Mars will amplify these challenges. Mars is far away millions of miles from Earth and a mission to the red planet will take two to two and a half years, between travel time and the Mars surface exploration itself.

As a psychiatristwho has studiedspacecrew member interactionsin orbit, Im interested in the stressors that will occur during a Mars mission and how to mitigate them for the benefit of future space travelers.

Given the great distance to Mars,two-way communication between crew members and Earthwill take about 25 minutes round trip. This delayed contact with home wont just hurt crew member morale. It will likely mean space crews wont get as much real-time help from Mission Control during onboard emergencies.

Because these communications travel at the speed of light and cant go any faster, experts are coming up withways to improve communication efficiencyunder time-delayed conditions.These solutions might includetexting, periodically summarizing topics and encouraging participants to ask questions at the end of each message, which the responder can answer during the next message.

Space crew memberswont be able to communicatewith Mission Control in real time to plan their schedules and activities, so theyll need to conduct their workmore autonomouslythan astronauts working on orbit on the International Space Station.

Although studies during space simulations on Earth have suggested that crew members canstill accomplish mission goalsunder highly autonomous conditions, researchers need to learn more about how these conditions affect crew member interactions and their relationship with Mission Control.

For example, Mission Control personnel usually advise crew members on how to deal with problems or emergencies in real time. That wont be an option during a Mars mission.

To study this challenge back on Earth, scientists could run a series of simulations where crew members have varying degrees of contact with Mission Control. They could then see what happens to the interactions between crew members and their ability to get along and conduct their duties productively.

Beingconfined with a small group of peoplefor a long period of time can lead totension and interpersonal strife.

In my research teamsstudies of on-orbit crews,we found thatwhen experiencing interpersonal stress in space, crew members mightdisplace this tensionby blaming Mission Control for scheduling problems or not offering enough support. This can lead to crew-ground misunderstandings and hurt feelings.

One way to deal with interpersonal tension on board would be to schedule time each week for the crew members to discuss interpersonal conflicts during planned bull sessions.We have foundthat commanders who are supportive can improve crew cohesion. A supportive commander, or someone trained in anger management, could facilitate these sessions to help crew members understand their interpersonal conflicts before their feelings fester and harm the mission.

Spendinglong periods of timeaway from home canweigh on crew members moralein space. Astronauts miss their families and report being concerned about the well-being of their family members back on Earth, especially when someone is sick or in a crisis.

Mission duration can also affect astronauts. A Mars mission will have three phases: the outbound trip, the stay on the Martian surface and the return home. Each of these phasesmay affect crew members differently. For example, the excitement of being on Mars might boost morale, while boredom during the return may sink it.

For astronauts in orbit, seeing the Earth from spaceserves as a reminderthat their home, family and friends arent too far away. But for crew members traveling to Mars, watchingas the Earth shrinksto an insignificant dot in the heavens could result in aprofound sense of isolation and homesickness.

Having telescopes on board that will allow the crew members to see Earth as a beautiful ball in space, or giving them access to virtual reality images of trees, lakes and family members, could help mitigate any disappearing-Earth effects. But these countermeasures could just as easily lead to deeper depression as the crew members reflect on what theyre missing.

Researchers studiedsome of these issues during theMars500 program, a collaboration between the Russian and other space agencies. During Mars500, six men were isolated for 520 days in a space simulator in Moscow. They underwent periods of delayed communication and autonomy, and they simulated a landing on Mars.

Scientists learned a lot from that simulation. But many features of a real Mars mission,such as microgravity, and some dangers of space meteoroid impacts, the disappearing-Earth phenomenon arent easy to simulate.

Planned missions under theArtemis programwill allow researchers to learn more about the pressures astronauts will face during the journey to Mars.

For example, NASA is planning aspace station called Gateway, which will orbit the Moon and serve as a relay station for lunar landings and a mission to Mars. Researchers could simulate the outbound and return phases of a Mars mission by sending astronauts to Gateway for six-month periods, where they could introduce Mars-like delayed communication, autonomy and views of a receding Earth.

Researchers could simulate a Mars exploration on the Moon by having astronauts conduct tasks similar to those anticipated for Mars. This way, crew members could better prepare for the psychological and interpersonal pressures that come with a real Mars mission. These simulations could improve the chances of a successful mission and contribute to astronaut well-being as they venture into space.

The author is a Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco

This article is from The Conversation and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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Isolation and annoying co-workers: Solving the stress of a trip to Mars - Astronomy Magazine