NASA Invites Media to Crew Completion of Yearlong Mars Simulation
Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) Mission 2 crew members (from left) Ross Elder, Matthew Montgomery, Ellen Ellis, and James Spicer, pose for a photo on Oct. 8, 2025. Credit: NASA The four volunteers who lived and worked in a simulated NASA Mars mission for more than a year will exit their habitat on Saturday, Oct. 31, after 378 days of isolation in a facility at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Health and performance data collected from the simulation can help NASA develop methods to counter human spaceflight risks for future Artemis and Moon Base missions. Beginning at 3 p.m. EDT, NASA will provide live coverage of the volunteers’ departure from the Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA, pronounced cha-pea’-ah) mission habitat. The exit ceremony will be streamed on NASA Johnson’s YouTube and social accounts. Johnson Center Director Vanessa Wyche and NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway will provide remarks. The CHAPEA crew member...
