If this statement is to become reality one day, the teams on the ground should have good concepts in their pockets that can be easily implemented to ensure survival on Mars. This is what the initiative "Humans on Mars - Pathways towards a long-term sustainable exploration and settlement of Mars" of the University of Bremen is researching and working on with around 60 researchers who are transdisciplinarily investigating the open questions of oxygen and food production, but also habitat design.

Among them from Leibniz-IWT are Askar Kvaratskheliya, Prof. Lutz Mädler, Dr. Nicole Mensching, Dr. Daniel Meyer, and Assoc. Prof. Ilya Okulov, who together with their colleagues from bime are investigating how to create spare parts for the habitat or tools for repairs. Their premises for their research over the next three years on this: Left to their own devices, the team on Mars can only use what is on hand, it may have to be done quickly and there is little energy to do it. How Mars dust can be turned into sheet metal and tools under such circumstances is something the team will be able to tell us in three years' time when they have completed their research.

Further information here.

Picture (c) University of Bremen, Matej Meza