Host Dave Schlom is joined by Mark Shelhamer, former Chief Scientist of the Human Research Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston and current director of the Johns Hopkins Human Spaceflight Laboratory in Maryland.
In his new book, Are We Ready For Mars?, published by Johns Hopkins University Press, Shelhamer lays out the challenges of making a trip into the truly deep-space environment that a Mars mission would entail.
Using data from decades of spaceflight, Shelhamer explains how difficult it is to travel into space for long periods, with emphasis on how space affects human body systems.
From radiation exposure to the lack of normal gravity and the isolation of long periods away from friends and family, spaceflight is hard on the human body and mind. Can trips to Mars be safely achieved? Probably, but it certainly won't be easy!
