Inside the Mars Dune Alpha simulation (Image: NASA)

       Scientists and entrepreneurs are desperate to explore the possibility of one day sending people to Mars.

       That hope came one step closer after NASA officially launched its "closed environment" programme that will see four total strangers live together for almost four years in a simulation replicating life on Mars.

       The quartet will live in the 3D-printed world for just over a year, part of the Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog — or CHAPEA Habitat — intended to get humans ready for the red planet.

       Known as the Mars Dune Alpha, the printed structure, will simulate what real life on the planet might be like.

       NASA will monitor how the volunteers, who are non-astronauts, cope with living in isolation and confinement in a tight space for an extended period of time.

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       The four volunteers will spend 378 days living inside the simulation (Image: Bill Stafford/NASA)

       Kelly Haston, Ross Brockwell, Nathan Jones and Anca Selariu all entered the space on Wednesday.

       There are three different crews, but they are the first to fully enrol in the habitat.

       Each crew will eventually carry out one-year missions in the Mars Dune Alpha.

       The groups will live and work in the habitat at NASA's Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.

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       The four volunteers, pictured, will be allocated specific tasks during their stay in the habitat (Image: Youtube/NASA Johnson)

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       They will carry out tasks such as growing crops, simulated spacewalks, habitat maintenance, and conducting scientific experiments.

       The Dune has everything someone might need to live on Mars, and the fine details go all the way down to red sand outside.

       Each crew member will have selected missions and activities to complete, things like spacewalks and robotic operations, as well as keeping their habitat in check.

       The habitat is relatively small and mimics what life might be like on Mars (Image: GETTY)

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       Research scientist and Commander Kelly Haston said: "I feel incredibly lucky and blessed to be part of this crew, it is a career highlight to be both scientist and test subject."

       US Navy microbiologist Anca Selariu, who will be the team's Science Officer, added: "I just can't believe I'm here."

       The results and conclusions of the test, and the knowledge gained could change the path NASA takes in its future missions to the real-life Mars.

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