An ambitious project to establish a human colony on Mars has attracted applications from tens of thousands of would-be astronauts, just two weeks after applications opened.
一项雄心勃勃的火星人类殖民计划在开放申请短短两周之内就吸引了成千上万名宇航员志愿者。
The mission, a private venture by the Dutch non-profit organization Mars One, aims to send a crew to the Red Planet in 2022 – and, due to the physiological change in the human body after a stay on Mars, there’d be no coming back. That hasn’t deterred people, though: so far, over 200,000 people have applied to become one of Mars’ first immigrants. “This is turning out to be the most desired job in history,” says Bas Lansdorp, co-founder of Mars One.
该计划由荷兰非盈利组织火星一号发起，目标在2022年向火星遣送一批人员。由于停留在火星上会使人体出现一些生理上的变化，这批人员预计不会再返回地球，而这并没有阻止人们。迄今为止，已有超过20万人报名首批移民火星。火星一号联合创始人巴斯·兰斯卓普称，“这将成为历史上最令人钦羡的工作。”
Day-to-day life on Mars will be no picnic: The organization says that the daily routine on the planet would involve construction work on the colony (installing greenhouses, for example), maintenance of the settlement’s systems and research into Mars’ climate and geological history–all in an inhospitable environment with unbreathable air and an average temperature in the planet’s mid-latitudes of around -58 degrees Farenheit.
在火星上的日常生活并不会多痛苦：该组织介绍，在火星上的日常活动将包括殖民地的建设工作(例如安装温室)，殖民地系统的维修工作以及研究火星的气候和地质历史。所有这些工作都需要在恶劣的生存环境中完成，火星上没有适宜人呼吸的空气，殖民地将设在火星中纬度地区，平均气温大约是-58华氏度(-50摄氏度)。
But Mars One says it is not looking for applicants with specific skills, such as a science degree, that might be useful during an interplanetary posting. Instead, they are looking for people who “have a deep sense of purpose, willingness to build and maintain healthy relationships, the capacity for self-reflection and ability to trust.” They also want volunteers who are “resilient, adaptable, curious, creative and resourceful.” Candidates will receive a minimum of eight years training before leaving Earth, the company says.
但是火星一号组织同时也表示，他们并不需要申请者拥有什么特定技能，例如获得了可能在宇航活动中派上用场的科学学位。不过，他们希望申请者“具有很强的使命感，愿意建立并维系良好的关系，能够反思并信任他人”，同时还应“坚韧，有很强的适应力、好奇心和创造力并且机智”。公司称，候选人在离开地球前将接受为期最短8年的培训。
Candidates hailing from over 120 countries (although the vast majority are from the U.S.) uploaded a video to Mars One’s website explaining why they’re suitable for the mission. Kyle, a 21-year-old grocery store clerk from the U.S., says he wants to be “an explorer and pioneer at the forefront of history.” Steven, a 43-year-old American who works in electronics, has even higher hopes for the mission: “I would like to go to Mars… to discover new life,” he says.
来自120多个国家的候选人(虽然大多数来自美国)在火星一号网站上上传了自己的视频，解释他们为什么适合这次的任务。21岁的凯勒来自美国，是一家杂货店的店员。他表示他希望成为“一名处在历史前沿的开拓者和先锋”。43岁的史蒂芬也来自美国，从事电子方面的工作，他对这次的任务有着更高的希望：“我希望到火星上去发现新的生命。”
In addition to people skills, successful applicants must be good fundraisers too: Mars One plans to raise much of the mission’s $6 billion estimated cost through a reality TV show following the applicants as they undergo preparations for the one-way trip to Mars.
除了人际交往能力之外，候选人也必须有很强的筹资能力：火星一号计划通过真人秀为该次任务筹措所需的大约60亿美元资金，真人秀节目将会跟踪拍摄候选人准备这趟有去无回的火星之旅的过程。
