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Scientists have searched for life on Mars for years, but now one young Briton hopes to create it herself on the red planet.

Maggie Lieu is among the five Britons who have been shortlisted for the Mars One mission, which aims to send people to live - and die - on the red planet.

The astrophysics PhD student said it would be a privilege to be the first woman to give birth on Mars, which would make her baby a Martian.

The story of the final four colonists, who are set to begin their new lives on Mars in 2025, will feature in a reality TV programme made by Endemol - the production company behind Big Brother.

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Maggie Lieu (pictured), 24, an astrophysics PhD student at the University of Birmingham was among the Britons shortlisted for the Mars One mission, which could see four people living on the red planet in 2025. She hopes to become the first mother on Mars

The programme, which as been dubbed Big Brother on Mars, will show the difficult selection process and training, to 'document the aspiring pioneers' astonishing journeys every step of the way in the lead up to the mission.'

The first installments of the TV show are expected early this year, but it is not clear whether there will be footage from the settlement on Mars.

Five British candidates have been selected from a pool of 660 candidates after participating in personal online interviews.

They include three science students, a laboratory technician and a self-confessed adrenaline junkie.

'The large cut in candidates [from 200,000 to 100] is an important step towards finding out who has the right stuff to go to Mars,' said Bas Lansdorp, co-founder of the Dutch Mars One mission.

'These aspiring Martians provide the world with a glimpse into who the modern day explorers will be.' 

The final four colonists will live in small pods on Mars, and grow their own food to survive in the harsh environment, where temperatures reach -62°C and radiation levels are high.

Ms Lieu, who studies at the University of Birmingham is among the chosen Britons. 

She told the Express: 'It would be incredible to be the Adam and Eve of another planet.

'Because it is a colonisation programme, it's inevitable that eventually someone will procreate and it would be incredible to be the first mother on Mars.'

'...I'm sure it would be a challenge - nobody has done any research on giving birth in a low-gravity environment - but just being able to say that your baby was a Martian would be really funny.' 

In a blog post, Ms Lieu said that it is not her sole aim to get pregnant on Mars, writing: 'I am more than just a human vessel/lab experiment.' 

Ms Lieu (pictured) has aspirations of becoming a martian mother. She said: 'Because it is a colonisation programme, it's inevitable that eventually someone will procreate and it would be incredible to be the first mother on Mars... just being able to say that your baby was a Martian would be really funny'

But, she believes that if humans want to start a colony, reproduction is a subject that needs to be discussed.

'There is a lack of research on everything from insemination to pregnancy to giving birth in low gravity environment. So the dangers involving such are unknown,' she said.

Talking about the ethics of having children in the colony, she said: 'I think that raising a child on Mars is no different than that on Earth,' pointing to women in developing countries who give birth at high personal risk.

She acknowledges that giving birth on Mars could be dangerous and that children would be raised in a confined space, but they won't know any better.

Hannah Earnshaw (left) a PhD student in astronomy at Durham University, is one five Britons who have been shortlisted for the one-way trip to Mars in 2025. Dr Alison Rigby, a 35-year-old laboratory technician from Kent (right) is also through to the next round of selection

'They will be growing up with some of the most intelligent people of Earth, they will be eating healthy foods (grown on mars as opposed to all the junk food we have access to on Earth) and they will have a largely unexplored terrain as their back garden. I couldn't think of anything better,' she wrote.

'Of course being the mother of the first martian would be a privilege, I would never be so stupid as to race for the title. My priority is the research.

'In my opinion Mars will only become a suitable environment for a child after the colony settles, which would be many years after the first crew land.' 

However, her maternal aspirations may not be possible if she does become one of the first colonists.

Meet the five people from the UK who want to go to Mars

Ryan Macdonald (left) a physics student at Oxford University said: 'The most important thing to do in life is to leave a legacy. A lot of people do that by having a child...for me this would be my legacy.' Claire Weedon (right) is the only Briton who doesn't work in science and is a self-confessed adrenaline junkie

Researchers from the University of Kansas have warned that high levels of radiation in space damage the ovaries and testicles, which could hamper people's efforts to reproduce.

Mars One says: 'In the first years, the Mars settlement is not a suitable place for children to live. The medical facilities will be limited and the group is too small.'The human ability to conceive in reduced gravity is not known, neither is there enough research on whether a foetus can grow normally under these circumstances.

'In order to establish a true settlement on Mars, Mars One recognises having children is vital.'

Ms Lieu is not too daunted about the prospect of leaving her family behind, because she thinks technology will advance rapidly so that she will one day be able to come home to Earth.

MEET THE BRITISH CANDIDATES FOR THE MARS ONE MISSION

 

Name: Hannah Earnshaw

Age: 23

Born: Durham 

Occupation: Student in astronomy at the University of Durham

Reason for going to Mars: 'Human space exploration has always interested me so the opportunity to be one of the people involved was really appealing. The future of humanity is in space.'

Hannah Earnshaw

 

Name: Alison Rigby

Age: 35

Born: Beckenham, Kent 

Occupation: Lab technician

Reason for Going to Mars: 'I think it's time for humans to start living somewhere else and I have the skills to make that happen.'

Dr Alison Rigby

 

Name: Maggie Lieu 

Age: 24

Born: Coventry 

Occupation: Astrophysics student at the University of Birmingham

Thoughts about Mars: 'Mars is a challenge. It is highly risky, and an enormous responsibility as well as an adventure.'

Maggie Lieu

 

Name: Ryan MacDonald

Age: 21

Born: Derby

Occupation: Master's student in physics at the University of Oxford

Reason for going to Mars: 'The most important thing to do in life is to leave a legacy. A lot of people do that by having a child...for me this would be my legacy'

Ryan MacDonald

 

Name: Clare Weedon

Age: 27

Born: Addlestone, Surrey

Occupation: Systems information manager for Virgin Media, who lives in Addlestone in Surrey

Reason for going to Mars: 'I believe there is more to life than marriage and babies and I soon hope to escape the office environment and travel the world solo for some amazing life experiences.'

Clare Weedon

She said: 'Space travel has been a dream of mine for a very long time, and now I have the opportunity for something even bigger. Mars is a challenge. It is highly risky, and an enormous responsibility as well as an adventure.'

The majority of the 100 applicants come from the US, 31 come from Europe, 16 from Asia, seven from Africa and seven from Australia. The full list can be viewed here. 

The selection process and training will be captured on film by Endemol-owned Darlow Smithson Productions (DSP) to make a TV documentary.

The project has been dubbed 'Big Brother on Mars' but no details have been released about the show's format, or whether it will feature footage from the red planet.

It does however promise to 'see people from all walks of life undergo one of the most extraordinary and challenging assessment processes ever seen.

'...[they] will be tested to the extreme as part of an elite training program run by a panel composed of pre-eminent scientists, adventurers and astronauts.'

Meet the 100 candidates prepared to colonize MARS... FOREVER

To qualify for the daunting mission - including the gruelling journey from Earth, which would take seven months - the candidates must demonstrate they have acquired the knowledge and skills needed to set up home on Mars, as well as the psychological and physical strength needed for the mission. 

The chosen Mars settlers will dedicate eight years of their lives preparing for the 300 million-mile (482 million km) pioneering mission.

'DSP will document the aspiring pioneers' astonishing journeys every step of the way in the lead up to the mission, which will see the winners become the first to make the 300 million-mile, one way trip to establish permanent human life on the red planet,' the company said.

The first instalments of the TV show are expected early this year.

Iain Riddick, from the production company said: 'This has to be the world's toughest job interview for what is without question a world-first opportunity and the human stories that emerge will captivate and inspire generations across the globe.'

Hannah Earnshaw, 23, a PhD student in astronomy at Durham University, is among the British hopefuls. Her interests include rock climbing, hiking and astronomy. 

WHAT AWAITS THE ADVENTUROUS COLONISTS? 

How will they get there?

Plans about how the four finalists will arrive on the red planet are vague. 

Mars One simply says that the crew will arrive on Mars in 2025, after a seven month journey from Earth.

A landing module attached to a rocket would drop the humans off, before they were met by a rover and taken to the Mars One Colony.

There is a possibility that the colonists could hibernate on the long journey. A proposal by Nasa on an unrelated mission suggests a crew could be put in a deep sleep for 180 days, allowing them to make the journey of 350 million miles (560 million km) with a reduced need for food and water.

A landing module attached to a rocket would drop the humans off, before they were met by a rover and taken to the Mars One Colony. There is a possibility that colonists could hibernate on the long journey (illustrated)

The crew would be kept alive through intravenous feeding, before being woken at their destination by inhalation of a coolant gas.

Nasa Administrator Charles Bolden believes that colonising Mars is essential to ensure the survival of our species.

'It's important for the preservation of the species, and I want to make sure that my grand-daughters, and great-great-grandaughters, have the opportunity to go there,' he said.

After landing on the red planet, the colonists would move into small 'pods', which would be their homes. An experiment is under way in the Utah desert to recreate the psychological effects of life on Mars, with four 'astronauts' living in isolation in cyclindrical homes (pictured) for two weeks at a time

What about when they arrive?

After landing on the red planet, the colonists would move into small 'pods' - their homes.

The colonists will have 50 square metres each and a total of more than 200 square metres combined interior space, according to Mars One.

It says: 'Within the settlement are inflatable components which contain bedrooms, working areas, a living room and a "plant production unit", where they will grow greenery.

'They will also be able to shower as normal, prepare fresh food in the kitchen, wear regular clothes, and, in essence, lead typical day-to-day lives'

An experiment is under way in the Utah desert to recreate the psychological effects of life on Mars, with four 'astronauts' living in isolation for two weeks at a time.

Like the researchers from the Mars Society, colonists might expect to survive on food rations, conduct experiments and shower every few days.

Nasa is also planning a manned trip to Mars and has designed a house with solar panels.

In its Hi-Seas experiment in Hawaii, crews of six are living in a small dome with a 'sense of airiness' and are only allowed to venture outside wearing space suits, perhaps indicating what may lie ahead for the colonists.

The colonists may breathe through a device called Helena, which will could use electrolysis to produce oxygen from water extracted from Martian soil.

Designed by the University of Western Australia and a Mars One astronaut candidate, the device could be flown on Mars One's first unmanned lander mission and arrive on the planet in 2018. 

While living on Mars may seem exciting, it could be monotonous sending time in cramped conditions with only three other people for company.Daily tasks might include cultivating food (an illustration of what a Mars One greenhouse may look like is shown) and maintenance of essential equipment

What will daily life be like? 

While living on Mars may seem exciting, it will probably be monotonous spending time in cramped quarters with only three other people for company on the entire planet.

Daily tasks might include cultivating food and maintenance of essential equipment. 

Scientists could fill their hours conducting experiments or perhaps using 3D printing to create objects they need to survive. 

In November, astronauts aboard the ISS made the first 3D printed object in space - a nameplate to commemorate the achievement. 

Nasa is studying objects to see how zero gravity conditions affect the printing process, but if they are sound, colonists could use additive manufacturing to produce spare parts and even perhaps games to keep them occupied.  

A look at the International Space Stations 3-D Printer

Will humans really be able to colonise Mars?

Maggie Lieu said: 'It would be incredible to be the first mother on Mars… just being able to say that your baby was a Martian would be really funny.' 

However, her maternal aspirations may not be possible if she does become one of the first colonists. 

Researchers from the University of Kansas have warned that high levels of radiation in space damage the ovaries and testicles, which could hamper people's efforts to reproduce. 

Mars One says: 'In the first years, the Mars settlement is not a suitable place for children to live. The medical facilities will be limited and the group is too small. 

Ms Lieu said it would be incredible to be the first mother on Mars, but researchers from the University of Kansas have warned that high levels of radiation in space damage the ovaries and testicles, which could hamper people's efforts to reproduce. An illustration of martian families is pictured

'The human ability to conceive in reduced gravity is not known, neither is there enough research on whether a foetus can grow normally under these circumstances. 

'In order to establish a true settlement on Mars, Mars One recognises having children is vital.' 

Kate Greene, who took part in Nasa's Mars simulation believes that all colonists should be female. 

She says it was rare for a woman to burn more than 2,000 calories a day, whereas men regularly exceeded 3,000, so sending women to Mars would be cheaper and more feasible than one with men – but arguably make reproduction harder. 

Mars One plans on sending additional teams to the colony every two years, with the intention that by 2033 there would be over twenty people living and working on Mars.

It's been described as a 'suicidal mission'. Despite this, the Mars One project - which aims to send people to live on the red planet - has whittled down its shortlist of candidates from more than 200,000 to just 100 - and it includes five Britons. Pictured is an artist's impression of what a colony on Mars could look like

The British hopefuls comprise three science students, a laboratory technician and a self-confessed adrenaline junkie, including Ryan MacDonald (left) and Dr Alison Rigby, (right) who said: 'My family is very close-knit and supportive, but they are still worried about the prospect of me going to Mars'

She said: 'Human space exploration has always interested me so the opportunity to be one of the people involved was really appealing. The future of humanity is in space.

'My family is pretty thrilled. They're really happy for me. Obviously it's going to be challenging, leaving Earth and not coming back. I've had support from my friends and family and we can still communicate via the internet.'

Dr Alison Rigby, a 35-year-old laboratory technician from Kent is also through to the next round of selection.

She said: 'My family is very close-knit and supportive, but they are still worried about the prospect of me going to Mars.

'I can understand their concerns; as time passes I realise more and more how deeply they feel for me and I for them. However as a potential representative of humanity on Mars I feel I have a responsibility to far more people.

'I believe that the MarsOne Project and indeed every endeavour that will contribute to humanity becoming a space-faring, multiplanet species are of vital importance to the long term survival of our species.

Ryan Macdonald, 21, from Derby, is the only British male among the 100 shortlisted candidates in round three.

A sci-fi fan and physics student at Oxford University, he's currently designing a Thermal-IR camera for a future sample return mission to Mars's moon Phobos, which could one day select the first landing site on the moons of Mars. 

Of his enthusiasm for the Mars One mission, he said: 'To search for evidence of past or present life, to speak to and inspire school children back on Earth, to build the first civilisation on another planet… How could anyone say no to that!'

He told The Guardian: 'The most important thing to do in life is to leave a legacy. A lot of people do that by having a child, having a family. For me this would be my legacy.'

He said that in hundreds of years, people will remember the first four people to step foot onto Mars.

A Demonstration Mission will be launched to Mars in 2018 using a probe (artist's impression pictured). This will provide proof of concept for some of the technologies that are important for a human mission. However, experts including astronaut Chris Hadfield, are not sure that the mission will get off the ground

Clare Weedon, 27, from Addleston, Surrey, is the only Briton who doesn't work in science and instead works as a systems information manager for Virgin Media.

A self-confessed adrenaline junkie, she said: 'I believe there is more to life than marriage and babies and I soon hope to escape the office environment and travel the world solo for some amazing life experiences.' 

 There are also three other UK-based candidates; Alexandra Doyle, 29, a law graduate from South Africa, living in Rutland, Lucie Ferstova, 25, from the Czech Republic, living in Emsworth and Zaskia Antel, a 20-year-old student from Bolivia living in Hove, East Sussex. 

While the experience may be amazing, it will certainly be tough. 

The crew of four will have to contend with temperatures as low as -62C and high radiation levels.

They could also be at risk of suffocation, starvation and dehydration. 

If all goes well, additional teams would join the settlement every two years, with the intention that by 2033 there would be over twenty people living and working on Mars. 

There, they will collect data, plant oxygen-producing vegetation and set the foundation for human colonisation. 

In spite of the risks, more than 200,000 people from around the world applied when the Netherlands-based group called for volunteers to join the mission in 2011.

The next stage may involve 'rigorous, potentially televised competitions' to test individuals' responses to stressful situations, and the current shortlist will be reduced to 40.

The time frame for this next stage depends on how long it takes the team to sort through the 100 on the list, but candidates are expected to know whether they have made the cut by the end of this year.

Individuals who are were not selected will have a chance to re-apply in a new application round set to open later this year.

Chris Hadfield, former commander of the ISS, said that the mission may not deliver on its promise. 'There's a great, I don't know, self-defeating optimism in the way that this project has been set up,' he warned. 'I fear that it's going to be a little disillusioning for people, because it's presented as if for sure it's going to happen

Howvere, some experts have dubbed the project 'mission impossible' and doubt it will ever happen.

Chris Hadfield, former commander of the International Space Station (ISS), recently told Elmo Keep, writing in Medium that the mission may not deliver on this promise.

'There's a great, I don't know, self-defeating optimism in the way that this project has been set up,' Hadfield told Medium.

'I fear that it's going to be a little disillusioning for people, because it's presented as if for sure it's going to happen.'  

Igore Mitrofanov of the Space Research Institute at the Russian Academy of Sciences told the Voice of Russia that the largest risk is the huge amounts of radiation the volunteers will receive.

Echoing Mr Hadfield's concerns, he said he doubts that the volunteers for this trip know enough science and technology to take the risk.

Ms Earnshaw said she is 'not surprised' by scepticism surrounding the project. 

Last year, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology reportedly found that any manned mission to Mars would result in the crew dying after 68 days, while critics have pointed out that the estimated cost of Mars One is a fraction of the amount proposed by Nasa.

The privately-funded mission is estimated to cost $6 billion (£4 billion) and is set to be filmed for a reality television series, which will help pay for some costs.

One Way Astronaut... find out why people want to go to Mars

A robotic lander and orbiter are scheduled to lift off in 2018, followed by a scouting rover (artist's impression pictured) in 2020 and six cargo missions in 2022. Mr Hadfield claims Mars should not be a target for colonisation at this point, but targets much closer need to be considered

Ms Earnshaw said: 'It's a very ambitious mission and requires lots of things going right for humans to leave the planet. But this project is encouraging other people to talk about the wider implications.

'It's definitely feasible. Space travel is risky but at the same time, there is a time scale in place.'

Mr Lansdorp admitted that anyone hearing about the Mars One project for the first time would be 'sceptical'.

'We've heard for so many decades about the difficulties of travelling to Mars,' Mr Lansdorp said.

'There is a huge difference between returning from Mars and a one-way, permanent settlement.

'We don't need to develop the capability of launching rockets from Mars. It's a whole different mission.'

Before any humans are sent to Mars, the Dutch organisation has to find funds to send a robotic lander and communications satellite to the planet. 

If that goes well, the next step will be to send an 'intelligent' rover to scope out a landing spot for habitation modules and life support systems which will be sent up on rockets before the first humans arrive.

The robotic lander and orbiter are scheduled to lift off in 2018, followed by a scouting rover in 2020 and six cargo missions in 2022.  

But Mr Hadfield claims Mars should not be a target for colonisation at this point, but targets much closer need to be considered.

WHY IS THE MARS ONE MISSION A ONE WAY TRIP? 

A one-way trip has obvious technical advantages - there is no need to develop the capability of launching rockets from Mars.

But it has huge implications for colonists who will probably die on Mars in the Mars One project.

The privately funded Mars One mission has an estimated total cost of $6 billion (£4 billion), which is relatively small for such an ambitious project.

Nasa is planning a two-way manned trip to Mars, and plans on putting a human on Mars in 1935.

He plans on revealing details of a Mars Colonial Transporter later this year, which would differ from the Dragon capsules and Falcon 9 rockets that his firm SpaceX is flying today. This image shows the Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Deep Space Climate Observatory Satellite, which lifted off last week

Nasa's chief scientist Dr. Ellen Stofan told The Guardian: 'We would definitely plan on bringing them [astronauts] back. We like to talk about pioneering Mars rather than just exploring Mars, because once we get to Mars we will set up some sort of permanent presence.' 

The agency believes that humans' ability to read a landscape will make them better at exploring it than a rover.

Dr Stofan said: 'Having humans on the surface is how I think we are going to be able to demonstrate totally conclusively that life did evolve on Mars.'

Despite budgetary worries, the Nasa mission will be on a much larger and expensive scale than Mars One's.

Elon Musk has recently also expressed interest in colonising Mars.

He plans on revealing details of a Mars Colonial Transporter later this year, which would differ from the Dragon capsules and Falcon 9 rockets that his firm SpaceX is flying today.

'The Mars transport system will be a completely new architecture,' he wrote on Reddit. 

'Am hoping to present that towards the end of this year. Good thing we didn't do it sooner, as we have learned a huge amount from Falcon and Dragon.'

He aims to blast 100 metric tonnes of 'useful payload' which would need a large spacecraft and powerful booster system, although there are no other details so far.