Viktor Baranov of Russia's Institute for Biomedical Problems (IBMP), which is carrying out the simulation, says he has had 150 applications from prospective candidates. On Tuesday at the Paris Air Show, ESA announced it was calling for applications from citizens of its own member states.
The gender lineup has yet to be determined.
Some experts think a single-sex crew may operate more effectively because there is no risk of sexual rivalry if a couple happen to pair up, while others think that the presence of the opposite sex provides a calming factor and a valuable, different perspective on problems.
Nor is there any agreement about what would be a good number - five men to one woman (or the reverse) could lead to sexual rivalry, and three-three may lead to gender tribalism, pitching men against women. "Four and two might be appropriate," says Heppener.
In many minds is an ugly incident that happened in a 110-day experiment in Moscow in 1999, when two Russian men engaged in a fistfight and one of them forcibly kissed a Canadian female participant. She stuck with the mission but insisted on having a lock fitted to her door.
As for the crew, organizers are looking for people aged 25-50 who are engineers and biologists, as well as a doctor - and all must have proficiency in Russian and English.
Then comes the character part, in which candidates will be slimmed down by psychological profiling and other tests.
"You must be a team player but also able to work by yourself," says Heppener, acknowledging that this all amounts to a mixture as exceptional as a trip to Mars itself.
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