Mars Base 1, also known as ‘Mars Camp’, has opened in China’s Gobi desert, and the first visitors were a group of students who even got to try on space suits. China’s space agency wants to make the camp a center for researchers and adventure-seekers to experience challenges that could face astronauts on Mars in the future. “I am very excited to be here. We saw the monolith, a crater, and a cave. It’s better than the Mars that I had imagined,” said a 13-year-old student. Read more for another video and additional information.
“Things will evolve in the future, and the base will receive a $374 million investment, which is around 2.5 billion yuan. The facility should expand to 67 square km, and developers believe that there will be 2 million visitors a year. This is not the first similar initiative in China. On the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, there is also the first Mars village which was unveiled back in March,” reports Debate Report.
