On Friday, the dome was closed and the study began.

Six people recruited by NASA have started a yearlong study on a barren Hawaiian volcano inside a dome , according to the BBC. The goal: Make it through a full year under conditions that simulate a mission to Mars.

The group is made up of , DW.com said. The four Americans chosen for the study are a doctor, pilot, architect and soil specialist, the report added.

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According to the French Press Agency, the dome , and measures 36 feet in diameter and 20 feet tall. The landscape resembles Mars in many ways, as there are no animals and little vegetation in the immediate vicinity of the dome.

Each of the test subjects will be provided a cot and desk in their rooms, and they'll dine on powdered cheese and canned tuna, among other packaged foods, according to the BBC report. Any test subject that leaves the dome will be required to wear a spacesuit during the trip, BBC also said.

Additionally, the scientists also want to learn more about how the test subjects will interact with each other when there's no other human contact available– an important factor in lengthy space missions.

"I think one of the lessons is that you really can't prevent interpersonal conflicts. It is going to happen over these long-duration missions, even with the very best people," Kim Binsted, one of the NASA scientists overseeing the study, told the BBC.

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