Sheyna Gifford has an unusual claim to fame—she is the first doctor ever to work on Mars. Not the planet Mars, of course, but Mauna Loa, a volcano in Hawaii, whose dusty, rust coloured landscape is probably the closest on earth to the red planet. She is serving on the Hi-Seas programme, a mission run the University of Hawaii and funded by NASA, whose purpose is to simulate a three year voyage to Mars and back.

Since last August Gifford and six other scientists have been living in a 1000 square foot solar powered dome, which they rarely leave. The project is treated as a real mission to Mars so the crew have all the supplies for their year long stay and, because of the time delay between Mars and Earth, they cannot speak to the outside world. They can, however, communicate by email, so Sheyna sent The BMJ this voice file to answer 15 of our questions.

Questions: Anne Gulland