Most reality shows can only offer their participants free booze and a fleeting chance at fame, but a new reality show called “Mars One” is upping the ante in a big, big way: they’re offering their cast a one-way ticket to Mars. Yes, really. A Dutch company is now accepting applications for aspiring astronauts/reality TV stars. The plan is for the first group of humans to depart for their new home planet in 2023, with subsequent crews joining them every two years (the journey from Earth to Mars takes seven months). Colonizing the red planet will cost an estimated $6 billion, which is where the reality show angle comes in.
According to Mars One CEO Bas Lansdorp, “Mars One intends to maintain an ongoing, global media event, from astronaut selection to training, from liftoff to landing…If humans land on Mars, everyone will want to watch. It will be bigger than the Olympic Games.” Potential participants need to keep in mind that the show might turn out to be more like “The Hunger Games” than “Mars-y Shore”: “There will be emergencies and deaths,” Lansdorp said. “We need to make sure that crew members can continue without those people.” Eesh. Keep reading »
