A glacier in Austria with striking similarities to the Red Planet offers just the right conditions for space explorers to train for a mission to Mars.
Kaunertal, Austria (dpa) - Every journey has to begin somewhere, so why not begin the exploration of Mars on a European glacier?
In Austria's Kaunertal valley, donning shiny spacesuits weighing nearly 50 kilogrammes, Carmen Koehler and Inigo Munoz Elorza are doing just that.
In their first "Mars walk" in the Austrian Alps this week, the German meteorologist and Spanish space technology expert simulated for the first time how astronauts would cope with the icy environment on the Red Planet.
"Bending down and getting up again is difficult," Koehler said. She and Munoz are part of the training and research mission being conducted this month by the Austrian Space Forum's network of researchers.
As expedition leader Gernot Groemer explained, the water present on Mars' surface around 3 million years ago has since turned into block glaciers, or ice beneath a surface of rock or sand.
At an altitude of 2,700 metres, the Kaunertal glacier offers "ideal conditions" with the same combination of rubble and ice, Groemer said.
Some 100 scientists and staff from 19 countries are spending two weeks there to practice work routines and communications and to conduct a dozen experiments in fields such as robotics, medicine and geo-science.
Koehler, Munoz and six other so-called analogue astronauts are at the centre of this Mars simulation. The small team has trained wearing space suits for five months.
Koehler says her fascination for outer space was roused by watching the science fiction TV series Star Trek.
"I hope that life exists also somewhere else," she said with a laugh.
The Austrian Space Forum's Mars Analog Mission in Tyrol is one of several earth-bound simulations that have been carried out so far.
A manned trip to Mars presents significant technological challenges, and the Austrian Space Forum estimates that it will take another 20 to 30 years before astronauts can be sent on the trip to Mars.
A Mars mission is expected to last 1,000 days, with half of the time devoted to the actual trip, and the other half spent on the planet.
There are still a lot of everyday problems to overcome, Groemer said.
For example, the astronauts have to train how to communicate with the control centre while facing delays of 20 minutes on account of the 200 million kilometres between Earth and Mars.
"It's like a slow online chat," Groemer said.
Because the communication delay would create a great deal of leeway in decision-making, Groemer says Mars explorers will need to have far more knowledge and additional skills compared to previous astronauts.
The experiments on the glacier include bathing with a steam shower instead of with wet wipes. If successful, engineers hope to use the new technology in water-scarce regions on Earth.
Psychologists from Warsaw are also taking part in the glacier simulation, researching how humans behave in extreme situations.
Other scientists are looking into solutions for outer-space toothaches, with one potential solution being a 3D printer that would create custom dental prosthetics.
But Groemer says he is sceptical about all of the efforts to minimize risk during space travel.
He points out that the legendary feats of adventurers who sailed around the Earth and explored the North and South Poles were much more dangerous than the trips of today's astronauts.
"Life begins outside the comfort zone," he said.
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