Endemol To Produce Reality Series On Mars One’s Mission To Colonize The Red Planet

Private spaceflight project Mars One, led by eccentric Dutch billionaire entrepreneur Bas Lansdorp, was originally announced back in 2011 as a mission to send the world’s first one-way astronauts to the Red Planet. The plan is to put together a group of earthlings who will go through a rigorous training process before making the 300-million mile voyage to Mars to establish the first human colony — with no hope of return. Endemol-owned Darlow Smithson Productions has now joined with Mars One as its exclusive worldwide production partner to document the different stages of the astronaut selection and training program. (Earlier this year, Lionsgate TV was in the mix, but I’m now told that a deal ultimately never came to fruition.) From over 200,000 applicants, 705 candidates will be tested to the extreme, overseen by a panel of scientists, adventurers and astronauts. In order to qualify for the mission, individuals must demonstrate they have acquired the knowledge and skills as well as high levels of psychological and physical performance required for the longest distance voyage ever embarked upon by humans. But, no return trip from the planet is possible. Instead Mars One says it will send additional crews every two years to further build the colony.
With the astronaut selection process already underway, the first instalments of DSP’s production are expected to begin airing around the world in early 2015, ... Read More »

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