Six men entered a sealed isolation chamber in Moscow Thursday for a 520-day, U.S.-supported experiment to simulate a roundtrip space mission to Mars. The time is broken up for 250 days for the trip to the Red Planet, 30 days on the surface, and 240 days to return to Earth. The crew will encounter 20-minute communication delays, realistic scenarios, and will perform over 90 experiments, but they will also play video games, including one that involves flying a lunar lander. 

The mock spacecraft consists of scientific and medical modules, living areas, a greenhouse, exercise area and a kitchen. The six-man team will be closely monitored for performance, sleep and activity cycles as well as psychological responses connected to stress, mood changes and conflicts. The isolation experience is the last phase of the Russian Mars 500 program, which is supported by the U.S., the Russian Space Agency and European Space Agency.