One-way ticket to Mars

140 million miles from home...

Would you like to visit Mars? What about a one-way ticket to the red planet – with
no chance of ever coming home? In this session you're going to read about a
project that aims to start the first human colony on Mars. And just for you, there
will be plenty of examples of the future perfect to test you, along with other future
forms for revision. Get ready to take one giant step into the future (perfect!)
To do
Read the article. As you read, try to answer this question: When will the first
humans arrive on Mars?
Article
Part One
How would you feel about living out the rest of your life on the planet Mars? After
all, it's a mere 140 million miles away and has lots of beautiful red dust to enjoy.
What's more, scientists' recent discovery of running water there means you
wouldn't even have to go thirsty.
So, you're tempted? The thing is, if you fancy a future on the red planet, you're not
alone. When the Mars One project asked for volunteers to make a one-way trip
with them, over 200,000 people applied.
Part Two
Mars One? It's an organisation with the goal of creating a "permanent
human settlement" on Mars. The Dutch not-for-profit body believes that
establishing a colony on the planet is the "next giant leap for mankind", and that it
will help us understand the solar system and inspire generations to come.
Their ambitious project has attracted both worldwide attention and heavy criticism.
Scientists have questioned the technical feasibility and large questions remain
about the ethics and funding of the project. But Mars One are adamant they can
overcome all the obstacles in their way.
Part Three
So, what about those 200,000 applicants? Well, that number has now
been whittled down to 100, and this in turn will be reduced to 24 after
a stringent selection process. This will involve filmed interviews, group activities
and a survival challenge in a mocked-up Martian environment, before successful
candidates train for the mission itself.
Part Four
So what's the plan? And what's the timeline? According to Mars One's website, if
everything goes according to the script:
  By 2016 they will have selected final crew and training for the mission can
begin. Mars One says this will not only test the group's ability to "deal
with prolonged periods of time in a remote location" but also it will teach
them medical procedures and enable them to grow their own food.
 Between 2020-2025, unmanned spacecraft will land on Mars and prepare a
base for the human crew. A rover will scout the planet for a suitable home.
And life support units will create an atmosphere suitable for life. By the
time the first crew set off, this technology "will have produced
a breathable atmosphere of 0.7 bar pressure, 3000 litres of water, and 240
kg of oxygen."
 This first group of 12 astronauts will themselves have completed training by
2026, and will make the journey to Mars that year, landing in 2027.
 A second group of 12 is scheduled to depart in 2028.

Part Five
Time will tell if the project will be a success. But for R. Daniel Golden and Yari
Rodriguez, a trip to Mars might even be a romantic destination. In an interview
with American broadcaster WGBH, the couple revealed that they had both been
selected among the final 100 applicants, and they hoped they could make the
cut and continue their life together as astronauts on Mars. If that happens, could
we even see the first ever 'Martian' baby?
Session Vocabulary
 colony
place where a group of people live, away from their home country
go thirsty
suffer from thirst for a period of time
living out
spending the rest of your life
settlement
a place where people live
body
organisation
the solar system
the system of planets that move around our Sun
feasibility
possibility that something can be done
ethics
moral situation
adamant
sure, impossible to persuade
whittled down to
reduced to
stringent
strict
mocked-up
created to look like something else
Martian
from Mars
according to the script
according to plan
prolonged
very long
unmanned
(of a vehicle) without a human driver inside

rover
vehicle which drives across land (here, across planet Mars)
breathable
able to be breathed
make the cut
be chosen or successful in a competitive situation