LIFE ON MARS AT THE ROYAL OBSERVATORY GREENWICH

National Geographic is soon to unveil the first ever Mars show home, a unique structure that will provide a fascinating glimpse of what life on the red planet could be like sooner than we think.

Open at the Royal Observatory Greenwich from November 10^th to 16^th, the habitat is based on an extensive consultation with Royal Observatory Greenwich astronomers and Stephen Petranek, author of How We’ll Live on Mars and consultant on MARS, the compelling six-part docu-drama from the Academy Award-winning team of Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, which premieres on Sunday 13^th November at 9pm on National Geographic.

Set in the year 2033, the thrilling adventure-drama, MARS, tells the exciting tale of the first manned mission to the red planet and our attempts to colonise it. This exhilarating space odyssey is interwoven with present day documentary with space visionaries such as Elon Musk and Neil deGrasse Tyson explaining the real science behind the drama, and how modern-day pioneers and technology will make the colonisation of Mars a reality one day.

Constructed over several months by Cardiff company Wild Creations, the show home depicts a dome-like structure mined from the regolith (Martian soil), combined with recycled spacecraft parts, including a double air-locked entrance, all designed to protect the early settlers from Mars’ unforgiving atmosphere and freezing temperatures. It brings to life Petranek’s vision of habitats as early as 2037, only fifteen years after Elon Musk’s SpaceX first planned shipment to Mars.

The show home will contain a transparent side section, giving visitors a slice of Mars life inside, as well as a depiction of an underground area, containing sleeping quarters, food supplies, scientific equipment and linking tunnels to other habitats.

A small exhibition around the home will bring to life visions of the colony and facts about our future on Mars and the very real prospect of becoming a multi-planetary species.