One of the biggest barriers to long-distance human spaceflight is not an engineering challenge, it is a biological one. How fast will we age in space?

In 2027, interdisciplinary cell biologist and 2022 Schmidt Science Fellow Maria Lastra Cagigas will be part of an innovative analog mission to Mars to help answer that question.

At the same time, she will be inspiring a new generation of girls in science.

Hypatia III is a Mars mission with a difference. 

As an analog mission, it will replicate the intensity of a science base on the red planet here on Earth.

The precise mission location was revealed this month. The crew will spend 14 days at the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station (fMARS) on Devon Island in the remote Canadian Arctic.

This isolated two-storey building measuring just eight meters in diameter will serve as the crew’s living and research quarters.

“I feel very excited and curious, not just about the Arctic as a place on the map, but as a mental landscape,” says Maria.

“I want to see where my mind goes when all that remains is a scientific mission, a small crew of seven, and the vastness around us.”

The second big difference is Hypatia’s objective.

Through its science missions and its crew members, Hypatia aims to empower and inspire women and girls to pursue careers in space exploration and space science.

“On a personal level, I really value the mission’s focus on outreach and visibility. I believe in science as a force for good, and I care about showing who gets to belong in it,” says Maria.

“I was lucky to grow up with strong role models, my mum, an MD-PhD, and a former coach who competed at an elite level, who showed me early on what’s possible.

“I want to help be that visible example for girls and underrepresented groups who might not yet see themselves in science or exploration.”

Maria is part of a ten-strong all-women interdisciplinary crew (seven plus three back-ups) comprising scientists, engineers, and a science journalist, each with a specific project, but who will need to operate as a close-knit team if they are to succeed.

The mission will meticulously replicate the conditions of day-to-day life on a Mars base.  The crew will contend with an extreme and unforgiving environment, confined working and living spaces, extended isolation, limited resources, closed-loop food systems, and the psychological pressure that creates.

“I want to see where my mind goes when all that remains is a scientific mission, a small crew of seven, and the vastness around us.”

And Maria’s time out of her lab has prepared her well.

Alongside her biology research at the University of Sydney, she is an experienced mountaineer, certified climbing instructor, and former president of her university climbing club, designing and leading expeditions in mountain ranges across the world.

So the Hypatia III mission was a natural fit.

“It is an adventure,” she says.  “A scientific and environmental adventure.  I consider myself an adventurous person, so this is putting them both together.”

“I want to lead my own lab, so I am also interested in the human dynamics.  The mission is like running a lab, we’ll have ten projects for two weeks and limited resources. How do you structure that for success?”

Maria’s own research is grounded on Earth. She specialises in health span biology and cancer metabolism, how our cells age and the impact of nutrition and diet on our biology.

As part of the Hypatia III mission, she will explore how the stresses of time spent in the Arctic base, including 24-hour daylight and isolation, might affect our cell biology, and the role of diet and nutrition in regulating that process.

“If there’s any hope of sending humans to Mars, and that is the dream, the biggest challenge is not only engineering, it is that aging in space is faster due to faster stem cell aging and epigenetic changes,” says Maria.

The potential impacts of these accelerated aging processes include increased risk of disease, malfunctioning immunity, impacts on bone density, and muscle loss.

“I’ll be studying how isolation and continuous 24-hour daylight affect metabolism at the molecular level. During the Arctic summer, the midnight sun disrupts normal biological rhythms, creating a powerful model for spaceflight stressors that are known to accelerate aging,” she says.

These insights will also have a clear relevance on Earth, from shift workers and people experiencing social isolation, to an aging population more broadly. 

As part of her project, Maria will provide the crew with a growth-promoting diet and a growth-inhibiting diet.

Blood samples will be taken at key points and, post mission, subjected to radiation and multi-omics profiling to better understand immunity, muscle health, and genomic stability.

“Day to day, this means designing tailored metabolic and training plans and collecting biological, wearable, and blood samples for deep plasma phenotyping.”

But the year ahead holds very different challenges.

Hypatia was created by Mariona Badenas-Agustí and science communicator Carla Conejo González to conduct research, engage the public, and create female role models in the sciences and the arts.

So, Maria’s immediate schedule is focused on outreach work in schools in Australia and in Europe.

“We are already delivering lots of talks in schools and social events. There’s a big outreach component,” says Maria, who will draw on her work within healthcare to connect with new audiences.

“I have worked in hospitals, translating my fundamental research to the clinic, trying to bring the research to patients and healthcare professionals.  Everything from the broader importance of research and advances in nutrition to the wider impact of STEM.”

The mission, encompassing multiple fields, also feels like a natural fit for a Schmidt Science Fellow.

“The thing about the Fellowship and its interdisciplinary framework, it’s like wearing special glasses,” says Maria. 

“You can see what you can add to many different projects or what you can learn, regardless of the topic.

“You can see how it is connected to your work because every field is connected. I always believed this, and the Fellowship helped me validate that.”

Now her interdisciplinary journey is set to inspire many more to follow her lead.

We will be checking back in with Maria as her interdisciplinary mission to Mars unfolds.

Find out more about Hypatia and follow the crew’s progress: hypatiamars.com