Houston We Have a Podcast
Houston We Have a Podcast
Episode•December 5, 2025•1h 0m

CHAPEA Mission 2

The CHAPEA Mission 2 crew discusses their backgrounds and preparations for their upcoming yearlong analog Mars mission inside the Mars Dune Alpha habitat at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. HWHAP 404.

Key Takeaways

  • 1

    The CHAPEA mission is a critical testbed for human Mars exploration

    The mission simulates the resource constraints, isolation, and communication delays of a real Mars mission.

    It integrates multiple disciplines—diet, exercise, psychology, and EVA operations—to understand how different systems interact.

    Data collected will inform NASA's Moon to Mars roadmap and future crewed missions in the 2030s.

  • 2

    Autonomy is essential for long-duration spaceflight

    Due to the 13 to 22-minute communication delay, crews must be able to solve complex problems without real-time guidance from Earth.

    The crew is trained to be self-reliant, making decisions and executing solutions independently.

  • 3

    Team cohesion and shared mental models are vital for success

    The crew emphasizes the importance of playing to individual strengths while maintaining a shared goal.

    Effective communication and the ability to offer and receive help are critical for managing the stressors of confinement.

    The crew aims to maintain their bond throughout the 378-day mission.

Intro

  • In this episode of Houston We Have a Podcast, host Kenna Pell sits down with the four-person crew of the second Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) mission. The crew discusses their backgrounds, the rigorous selection process, and their preparations for a 378-day simulated Mars mission inside the Mars Dune Alpha habitat.
  • The crew consists of Commander Ross Elder (USAF test pilot), Medical Officer Ellen Ellis (USSF acquisitions officer), Science Officer Matthew Montgomery (hardware engineer), and Flight Engineer James Spicer (aerospace engineer).

– Introduction to CHAPEA Mission 2

  • The episode introduces the CHAPEA Mission 2 crew, who are preparing to spend 378 days in a 1,700-square-foot habitat at NASA's Johnson Space Center to simulate life on Mars.

– Meet the Crew

  • The crew members share their professional backgrounds, ranging from military test pilots and space force officers to hardware engineers and technical directors.

I consider myself incredibly grateful to be part of the exceptional crew and just play a role with the massive support structure that put this whole project together.

– Ross Elder

– The Selection and Training Process

  • The crew details the 19-month selection process, which included physical testing, psychological evaluations, and a winter training exercise at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) in Wyoming.

– Mission Objectives and Stressors

  • The crew discusses the primary stressors they will face, including resource limitations, communication delays, and high-tempo EVA simulations.

What makes this mission unique is that CHAPEA is very much about the integration of lots of different types of data.

– James Spicer

– Off-Duty Life and Team Bonding

  • The crew shares how they plan to spend their limited downtime, including reading, playing games, and forming a band with a keyboard, banjo, and harmonicas.

Resources

Topics

Mars ExplorationAnalog MissionHuman SpaceflightNASATeam DynamicsAerospace EngineeringSpace Research

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