Some people look at Mars and see boulders and dust. Others see stuff that isn’t there. Not yet, anyway. Colonies. Raccoons and maple trees. Astronauts chatting to robot assistants in sign language. Vegetable gardens, rabbit herds and fish farming made possible by, of all things, global warming. Can a Wal-Mart outside the Gusav Crater Gated Community be far behind? “The possibilities are endless,” said Kevin Sloan, 22, president of the Mars Society chapter on the Pennsylvania State University campus.

Fear not. They’re earthlings setting up a mock base to live and learn and dream how life would be on the Red Planet. No one ever said it would be easy to set up a manned Mars base, and it hasn’t been. “Everything always takes longer than it is supposed to,” says an undaunted Robert Zubrin, overseeing it all from mission control. “There’s a million and one details that need to be taken care of.” Critical supplies have to be brought in from vast distances. High winds sometimes scour the construction site. And intense cold has been forcing the crew to drive into town and get a motel room for the night. But the red, green and blue Martian flag has been firmly planted in the unearthly soil of Wayne County, Utah. The first team of astronauts, a heartening blend of nationalities, has struggled into space suits, pushed back the heavy door on the air lock, and ventured forth into a new world. It’s not quite Mars, but it sure looks like it.