There's this group up in Alaska who have buitl their own Mars Base, as it were. Think Biosphere 2 but on a much smaller scale with realistic goals and no hype or hints of cult behavior among the participants.

Below is one of the recent news releases by the person staying in Mars Base Zero. At the end is the URL to their Web site and where you can get regular e-mail updates on their progress.

Of course one thing they may not encounter on Mars is having their base trampeled by a moose!

ISECCo Begins Closure III!

I moved into Mars Base Zero on August 26, 2005 to begin
Closure III, the third semi-closed operation of the
facility. I plan to be inside for a week. This is my first
closure, although Ray and I did live in the facility the
winter of 1999-2000. The prior two closures were done by my
husband Ray. The first closure was a week in 2002. The
second was 39 days in 2004. This closure's purpose is to
gain more experience in operating Mars Base Zero from an
other perspective than Ray.

The diet consists of broccoli, cauliflower, beets, turnips,
cabbage, onions, and potatoes. Lots of potatoes. Only one
green bean plant grew, giving very few beans. I brought in a
jar of spice, black tea and herbal tea bags as well as 4
small herb plants. Things didn't grow especially well this
summer due to lack of water. Decreased sunlight due to smoke
from forest fires here in Alaska likely also contributed to
the lower productivity. Despite this, there should be enough
for this closure and possibly another week-long closure in
September.

A humorous tragedy occurred the night before I moved in: a
moose attacked Mars Base Zero! A moose trampled over the
fence and ate all 6 cabbages, the beet tops, broccoli, and
cauliflower. Since we knew they grew, we decided to go to
the store and buy replacements (3 cabbages, 2 cauliflower, 4
broccoli, 4 small beets). The moose came back the first
night but since the plastic was now over the south side, it
stayed out.

ISECCo is a non-profit, all-volunteer organization which has
been committed to the advancement of space colonization
since 1988. Critical to the human habitation of space is
life support technology which includes sustainable food
production. ISECCo has built a semi-Closed Ecological Life
Support System facility named Mars Base Zero in preparation
for a fully closed system. We are operating the facility to
achieve a balanced diet that minimizes crop area and
maximizes yield. Many thanks to Debi-Lee and Ruth for their
help maintaining Mars Base Zero this summer, which made this
closure possible.

Frankie Collins

PS-
To make communications easier while inside, I am borrowing
Ray's ISECCo e-mail since it is set up for sending to the
mailing list.

For more information or to volunteer to help see
http://isecco.org or call (907)488-1001. You can use Pay
Pal to Make a Donation.