Saskatoon resident advances toward one-way trip to Mars

These next few years may be Justin Semenoff’s last on planet Earth—if the Saskatoon resident wins a coveted spot on the Mars One Mission, a privately funded program that plans to send 24 astronauts on a one-way trip to Mars starting in the year 2023.

The Canadian Forces Army combat engineer made it through the second stage of the selection process this week; he and 1,058 other applicants were picked from a list of 200,000 to advance to the next stage of challenges, which will include “rigorous simulations with a focus on testing the physical and emotional capabilities” of the candidates.

The mission’s goal is to one day form a colony on the red planet