Symposium keynote: Enduring the isolation of interplanetary travel : A personal account of the Mars500 mission

• The authors voluntarily enclosed themselves to endure a simulated trip to Mars.
• Meaningful work, clear and complete training, responsiveness were important to crew.
• Free time activities, medium-term goals and psychological support were fundamental.

The Mars500 mission was a 520-day long simulation of a round trip to Mars. After going through an intense selection process, 6 individuals from various countries lived and worked for several months in a pressurized facility in Moscow, Russia, mimicking as close as possible the conditions of real space flight. The simulation concluded in November 2011 when the crew came out of the facility in seemingly good health and mood. A first person point of view description of daily life and activities is provided as well as the indication of the environmental factors that can act as stressors during such a mission as well as their change over the different periods of flight, including adaptation to the real world. Advice for the design and logistics of future exploration missions is given.