The current situation is forcing us to adapt our way of life to it.. That is why we asked the astrobiologist and “marsonaut” Michaela Musilová about what she thinks about our state of emergency. We also talked about men and female emancipation.

Photo  Michaela Musilová

How are you experiencing the current situation yourself, and do you think you are better prepared for it than others because you have already experienced space isolation training?
Fortunately, psychologically, I have no problem. All of the missions I led as commander taught me to live in extreme conditions. The only thing that worries me is that there is not enough food in stores in Hawaii, where I currently live.

What is missing most often on shelves?
Toilet paper, cleaning products, and food items are limited, for example
In addition to missing supplies, you have to worry about changes in your working circumstances, right?
Yes, from the point of view of my work it will not be easy. The current situation has made it quite difficult to recruit crewmembers for NASA's simulated missions to the Moon, which were due to begin in April.

The young astrobiologist and marsonaut from Bratislava, Michaela Musilová (31), was inspired to pursue her current profession by the film Aliens of the Deep by James Cameron. Ever since she was a child, she has not stopped dreaming of going to space as an astronaut and, above all, of exploring Mars. She is currently the Director of HI-SEAS in Hawaii, where she organizes and runs simulated missions to the Moon and Mars in collaboration with NASA, ESA and many other organizations in the space sector. The goals of the missions are to prepare people and technologies for living and working elsewhere in the universe in the future. She first worked for NASA at just 21, at 23 she performed research on extreme lifeforms on Greenland's glaciers, and her research was also connected to the Curiosity rover’s space mission.

As an astrobiologist, you have to see the current situation from various angles, do you think humanity can survive such a crisis?

I have been monitoring the situation since December and I was already worried about coronavirus then. I was on simulated missions to the Moon and I had very little information available about what was happening. When I saw how the situation was evolving, I joked that it might be better to stay us on the "Moon" and not return to Earth. I believe that humanity will manage this situation and that we will get through it, but it will certainly influence us very much. Nonetheless, we will learn a lot from this and we will be better prepared for this should it happen again in the future.

 

Photo: Michaela Musilová

 

How does the situation affect the space program?

Quarantines around the world and the change in workflows have disrupted the space program substantially. Many projects are suspended, grant applications are delayed and many space activities are canceled for security reasons. Together with NASA and several American companies, I recently organized a series of simulated missions to the Moon, which were scheduled to begin in April. We had to delay the start of the missions until the end of the summer. It will not be easy, but we will not be discouraged.

When will you go to space? Is this your greatest goal or what would you like to achieve in your life?

I am still dreaming of going to space, but I am still far from fulfilling this dream. Currently, as a Slovak citizen, I cannot apply to be an astronaut for NASA or the European Space Agency (ESA), because Slovakia is not a full member ESA yet. I am hopeful that Slovakia could become a full member within ten years and then this opportunity will be available to all Slovaks who desire it.

What exactly would you like to study in space?
I am most passionate about performing research on Mars. There is still hope that there could be extraterrestrial life living there now, or at least we could find traces of it having lived there in the past. The Moon has also become very interesting in terms of space exploration. We could build settlements for humans to live there long-term. If I will not be able to achieve these goals (after all, the first journey to Mars is at least 15 years away), I would like to at least be able to help someone from Slovakia make it there one day. It terms of global goals, I would like to support the development of the first base on the moon.

Would you go to space even if you couldn't go back?

Yes, but only when I’ll be older. Then, once I’ll feel like I’ve enjoyed everything I wanted to do on Earth, I’ll be willing to fly to Mars even with a small chance of survival. However, space agencies are working on minimizing these risks for astronauts.
That is probably what the simulated missions are for – to prepare humans for real missions. What happens during these missions?
During our missions, we perform diverse research, we grow plants and crops under simulated Mars/Moon conditions, and we study lava tunnels because life could potentially be found on Mars in similar tunnels. We also test robots and rovers to see if they could be useful for humans on real missions.
With all of this work, it seems to me that you can't have much free time for yourself...
I have very little time for myself indeed. I devote a large part of it to my loved ones and friends. The rest I dedicate to my hobbies. My biggest passion outside of work is dancing and traveling. I have been dancing since I was four and since then I have tried all kinds of styles, from breakdancing, flamenco to Hawaiian hula dance.

How do you view female emancipation?
I think that women's emancipation is needed to finally reach a point where there will be equal rights between genders. Emancipated women are usually the ones who were not afraid to fight for our rights as women. Many women today can live and work in much better conditions thanks to the efforts of such women decades ago. Nevertheless, women still face unfair conditions in the workplace and elsewhere in society today, so we must continue to fight for our rights.

Have you ever encountered someone discriminating against you in the work environment because you are a woman?
Yes, many times. It had a big impact on my life journey because I had to try and work more than my male colleagues to get at least some recognition. On several occasions, an opportunity to participate in research expeditions, such as to Antarctica, was taken away from me, because "it would be too difficult for a woman". On the other hand, as they say, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

Photo: Michaela Musilová

If you were to start a new life on Mars after the end of the world, what would you start with?
We would first have to build bases where people would be safe and where we could create conditions for survival. This means extracting water from soil and ice. We would have to find a way to grow our own food, recycle almost everything and very importantly, we would have to teach everyone there to get along together in those difficult conditions. Exactly that is also vital in the current situation around the world.