About this Research Topic

Background

Public space agencies and private companies are investing more and more into space exploration, with the clear aim of taking humans to another planet as early as 2030-2040s. This is possible due to the recent advances in space technologies enabling these extended human missions to the Moon and Mars. However, the consequently related issue of prolonged exposure of crewmembers and devices to the threats of the space environment will lead to stricter requirements on the spacecraft's reliability, functionality, safety, and autonomy.

Turning this vision into a reality will be challenging, even assuming the funding and technology come into play at the right time given the technological challenges, the numerous pathways possible for mission architectures, human factors, and a rapidly developing scientific understanding of planetary bodies paired with rapid advances in robotics and machine learning. For this reason, preparation for this type of mission is of vital importance, specifically in human performance, team dynamics domains, but also in habitat design and operational aspects.

Analog environments offer characteristics that resemble to some extent the environment of a real space mission. These Analog environments are suitable platforms to study adaptation mechanisms to extreme environments, and usually involve challenging and particular living conditions that include isolation, reduced space, limited equipment infrastructure, extreme environmental conditions in some cases, etc. Within space analogs, habitats are crucial because they suppose the base or settlement for planetary exploration missions. Design, architectural and structural aspects, well-being, and technical components of these habitats are also very important.

In this special issue, we invite authors to submit articles covering research and conceptual aspects of both space analogs and habitats and their relationship to human performance, habitability, well-being, and operational areas with an emphasis on long-duration missions such as Mars missions.

Keywords: human performance, Mars, architecture and design, well-being, space psychology, space analogs, habitats, extreme environments, habitat design, Analog environments, Adaptation study, planetary exploration missions

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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