The “mission”, commanded by João Lousada, a mission manager at the European Space Agency, is being promoted by the Austrian Space Forum. In addition to João Lousada, the “mission” will involve five other analogue astronauts (people who carry out space simulations on Earth) from the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Sweden.

During their tasks, which include conducting 17 scientific experiments, the six crew members will wear a space suit simulator weighing 50kg and communicate with the operations centre in Vienna, Austria, with an intentional 10-minute delay, the average time it would take a radio signal to travel between Mars and Earth.

The initiative involves collaboration with the University of Évora, the Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering, Technology and Science, the Alqueva Lake Observatory, the Interactive Centre for Astronomy and Innovation in Education, and Portuguese company Tekever (a specialist in space and defence technology).

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