The final four Europeans who are set to take part in a simulated Mars mission were presented to the media at ESA Headquarters in Paris, France, last Thursday.

After completing a two-month period of training for their mission, two of the group will be chosen as prime crew to join four Russian-selected crewmembers inside the specially designed isolation facility in Moscow. For 105 days, as part of a cooperative project between ESA's Directorate of Human Spaceflight and the Russian Institute for Biomedical Problems (IBMP), the six-strong crew will live, eat, sleep and work in the recently refurbished facility. During this time, they will experience elements of a simulated Mars mission. Their stay is in preparation for the full Mars500 study due to start later in 2009, which will see another six-member crew sealed in the chamber to experience a complete 520-day Mars mission. The purpose of the Mars500 study is to gather data, knowledge and experience to help prepare one day for a real mission to Mars.

(Photo, courtesy of ESA-N, Imbert-Vier, is of the final four European participants for this project: Cedric Mabilotte, Oliver Knickel, Cyrille Fournier, Arc'hanmael Gaillard.)