A SPACE-CHASING Coventry woman has been shortlisted for a one-way trip to Mars as she hopes to become the first humans to step foot on the planet.
Maggie Lieu has made the final 100 from over 200,000 initial applicants to make the 140-million-mile one-way trip to the Red Planet.
The 24-year-old, along with the rest of the group, will now be tested to see how they would cope in the harsh environment of Mars, before the final 40 are chosen to make the £4billion journey.
The University of Birmingham astrophysics PhD student said its a one-way ticket as there isn’t the infrastructure on the planet for a launch pad back home and they would have to carry fuel onboard to get back which would cost even more.
She added: “There are also health risks with coming back because the long-term effects of the low gravity on Mars will affect our bone density and muscles.
“It might be that our bones are so brittle that just the impact of landing on earth would crush our bodies.
“If I really did go I think my mum would be quite upset. I did go away to university for a whole year.
“It wasn’t that bad because I called home every day.”
The Mars One mission aims to send teams of four to the red planet every two years from 2025, until 40 people are living there.
The Dutch project is privately funded and so far around £500,000 of the £4billion has been raised.
It’s one of several projects aiming to put the first humans on Mars, but this one plans to let a reality TV show decide who makes the journey to broadcast life on Mars.
The Mars One mission will take off in 2025.
