To qualify, you must be:
* A U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
* A non-smoker, age 30 to 55 years old, and proficient in English.
* A viable candidate as an actual astronaut. For this, you usually need a master's degree in a STEM field, or you need to be a pilot or doctor or military officer.
Isolation is pretty much their number one challenge. Machines are easier to keep running than minds.
It's somewhat similar to being confined on a sailing ship, but is still different, and the minute details really matter for something like this.
> The ship, without a mast or a rudder, was carried across the northern Pacific Ocean by currents. It drifted for 14 months, during which the crew lived on desalinated seawater and on the rice of their cargo.
^ Their story only got worse! The tribe turned them into slaves.
- blood pressure medications
- blood thinners
- seizure medications
- daily allergy medications
- diabetic insulin daily
- sleeping aids
- ADHD/ADD medications
- antidepressants
- anxiety medications
(Insert grumbling about "flight surgeon horseshit" here.)
There's really no way to avoid bringing those with you, and if the humidity control isn't just right, well then that stuff can grow anywhere that humidity accumulates. And it's not like you can open the windows and scrub the place down every six months to keep it at bay.
I guess I’ll have to wait for the ESA version…
It won't be easy to find people fulfilling all that criteria (including health requirements) and willing to leave a good job for a year.