News: more than 200,000 people from 140 countries have applied for a one-way ticket to join a human settlement on Mars (+ slideshow).

On Monday non-profit organisation Mars One closed their first call for volunteer astronauts wanting to travel to the red planet.

The £4 billion project, founded by Dutch entrepreneur Bas Lansdorp in 2012, plans to establish the first permanent human settlement on Mars in 2023 and has proposed that humans will live in a modular environment made up of multiple inflatable units.

The settlement would comprise of 1000 m3 of living space - a total of 250 m3 per person for a team of four. The colony would live inside 'lander' living units that each feature an inflatable living section. The landers would be installed by roaming rovers and be filled with breathable air from a life support unit before the humans arrive.

"As the habitat will be modular, and constructed using fully redundant systems, even if one inflatable unit is damaged beyond repair, the habitat will still be secure and fully functional," said the organisation.

There will be solar panels outside of the living quarters and an indoor farm for growing and harvesting foods.

In April, Mars One launched an application website to search for the volunteer astronauts and asked people to submit videos to pitch why they should be selected for the colony. In five months the organisation received 202,586 application videos from people across the world.

Three further application rounds will take place over the next two years. Mars One will then select up to ten teams of four individuals for a seven year training programme - and in 2023 just one team of four people will travel to Mars and settle permanently on the planet, according to the organisation.

"The first footprint on Mars and lives of the crew thereon will captivate and inspire generations; it is this public interest that will help finance this human mission to Mars," said Mars One.

Other space features to appear on Dezeen recently include a proposal for the colonisation of Mars with caves built by robots and an orbiting factory that will use 3D printing and robots to fabricate giant structures in space.

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Here's the full announcement from Mars One:

Over 200,000 apply to first ever recruitment for Mars settlement

The first round of the Mars One Astronaut Selection Program has now closed for applications. In the 5 month application period, Mars One received interest from 202,586 people from around the world, wanting to be amongst the first human settlers on Mars.

Mars One applicants come from over 140 countries; the largest numbers are from the United States (24%), India (10%), China (6%), Brazil (5%), Great Britain (4%), Canada (4%), Russia (4%), Mexico (4%), Philippines (2%), Spain (2%), Colombia (2%), Argentina (2%), Australia (1%), France (1%), Turkey (1%), Chile (1%), Ukraine (1%), Peru (1%), Germany (1%), Italy (1%) and Poland (1%).

From this applicant pool, the Mars One Selection Committee will select prospective Martian settlers in three additional rounds spread across two years. By 2015, six-ten teams of four individuals will be selected for seven years of full-time training. In 2023, one of these teams will become the first humans ever to land on Mars and live there for the rest of their lives.

Each Round 1 applicant is now being screened by the Selection Committee, which is expected to take several months. Candidates selected to pass to the next round will be notified by the end of 2013. The second round of selection will start in early 2014, where the candidates will be interviewed in person by the Mars One Selection Committee.

Aspiring martians who have missed Round 1 or could not meet the age restriction can join subsequent Astronaut Selection Programs. Mars One will commence regular recruitment programs as the search for follow-up crews continues.