The Mars One settlers will spend the rest of their lives on the planet.
The Mars One settlers will spend the rest of their lives on the planet.
Aucklander ready to leave wife and children forever to fulfil space dream
He works in a contact centre by day and in a Panmure halal butchery by night - but by 2026, Saeed Ghandhari could be manning the first human colony on Mars.
The Iranian-born immigrant is among 100 people who have beaten 200,000 other applicants in a global selection process for a one-way trip to the red planet.
The Mars One project - a crowd-funded, multi-billion dollar venture conceived by Dutch entrepreneur Bas Lansdorp - aims to create the mother of all reality TV shows by putting humans on Mars in just over 10 years.
Mr Ghandhari, 34, was told on Friday night he'd reached the next round and is determined to make it through to the final pool of 40 would-be astronauts.
"Something in my heart tells me I'm going to make it - but I still don't want to accept that in case it doesn't work out."
The St Heliers resident has a background in applied physics, astronomy and cosmology, but works as a contact officer for the Ministry of Social Development and operates Cheap Meat Ltd.
For the chance to move to Mars, he'd happily leave it all behind.
It would be tougher, he said, saying goodbye to wife Emma and sons Sina, 14, and Ali, 4.
"It's a bit hard for them, but my wife is trying to understand the situation and she is supporting me, because this is something very important."
Mr Ghandhari, a seasoned hunter, believed he was tough enough to live in the Martian environment, which included Antarctic temperatures, no water, little oxygen and deadly amounts of carbon dioxide.
Shifting to New Zealand from Iran had also prepared him well - he wrote in his application: "I've been a successful migrant on the Earth, why shouldn't I be a good migrant on the Mars?"
The next selection rounds would focus on composing teams that could endure all the hardships of a permanent settlement on Mars.
Mars One's 2026 touchdown would come a decade before any likely manned mission by Nasa, which has expressed doubts about Lansdorp's vision.
In Auckland, Stardome astronomer David Britten was also sceptical.
"Let's say they could get the money, and let's say they could find the candidates - the timescale they seem to be working toward is the part that seems totally unrealistic to me."
Saeed Ghandhari is confident he'll be among the final 40 picked to live on Mars. Picture / Nick Reed
On the red planet
• Mars One aims to land humans on Mars by 2026 - a decade before Nasa would likely send any manned mission there - in what would prove the most expensive reality TV production ever made. • Of 202,586 applicants worldwide, 50 men and 50 women, including Aucklander Saeed Ghandhari, have reached the final rounds. The pool will be whittled to 40, from which six groups of four will be chosen to go into space. • The Mars lander to be used would be tested eight times before the landing of the first crew, using identical vehicles, and every component would be selected for its simplicity, durability and capacity to be repaired using facilities available on the planet. • The martian environment is extremely inhospitable, with Antarctic temperatures, no water, little oxygen and gravity, and deadly amounts of carbon dioxide The Sun's UV radiation would fry exposed skin.
