NASA Invites Media to Crew Completion of Yearlong Mars Simulation

What happened

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. Low Oct 27, 2026 MEDIA ADVISORY M26-083 NASA Headquarters 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. NASA is a space exploration and public company founded in 1958.

Media will have the opportunity to capture the moment the crew exits the building, stepping outside for the first time in more than a year. The second CHAPEA mission began on Oct.

These included communication delays, resource limitations, and isolation. 31, after 378 days of isolation in a facility at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

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. 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.

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.

Media are invited to watch the CHAPEA Mission 2 ceremony live at NASA Johnson on a screen outside the hangar holding the CHAPEA facility, after which a subject matter expert will be available in person to answer questions. media interested in attending the activities in person, or media interested in speaking virtually with the CHAPEA Mission 2 crew members in the days following completion of their mission, must contact the NASA Johnson newsroom no later than 2 p.m., Friday, Oct.