From Keith Pearce
Andrea Maltman discusses experiments to probe our ability to spend long periods in a small group with limited space and resources (16 May, p 36). But a number of such “experiments” have already been done.
Sailors, especially on early exploration and colonisation expeditions, spent long periods at sea with very limited space, finite and often inadequate resources, and vessels that needed constant attention. Polar explorers experienced interdependence, danger and limited resources within a smaller group.
The environment of nuclear submariners may be more like that of a Mars mission, although the crew is larger. Scientists who work on the polar ice caps for months on end are another group offering parallels.
Cam, Gloucestershire, UK
