If you have ambitions of being one of the first people on Mars , listen up : A Dutch company says it is moving along with its plan to send four lucky Earthlings to colonize the Red Planet . The catch : They wo n't ever come back . The Mars One foundation announced Tuesday that it has secured lead suppliers for an unmanned mission launching in 2018 , which involves a robotic lander and a communications satellite . Lockheed Martin has been contracted to study building the lander , and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. will develop a concept study for the satellite , Mars One said . This first mission will demonstrate technology that would be involved in a permanent human settlement on Mars . If all goes well -- and that 's still very much an `` if '' -- the first pioneers could land on Mars in 2025 . Enthusiasm has been growing since the project 's first big announcement in April . More than 200,000 people have signed up to be prospective astronauts , Mars One CEO Bas Lansdorp said in Washington on Tuesday . Apparently , they 're OK with living out the rest of their lives on Mars . The technology for a return flight does n't exist -- there 's no Kennedy Space Center launch pad over there ! -- and having a one-way trip greatly reduces costs , the company has said . The application period is now closed , and by the end of this year , the company plans to notify those special folk who made it to Round 2 . The unmanned mission is the `` most important and most difficult step of actually getting humans to Mars , '' Lansdorp said . It would also be the first privately funded planetary exploration mission . `` The opportunity to participate in that is just really exciting , '' said Ed Sedivy , a chief engineer at Lockheed Martin Space Systems . Lansdorp expects that the majority of funding for the unmanned missions will come from sponsors and partners , not public contributions . The cost of the lander and satellite will be something that the contracted companies will study , although Mars One has a ballpark figure in mind , Lansdorp said . Mars Curiosity rover finds life-supporting chemicals . What they want to send in 2018 . The lander will be based on the successful NASA Phoenix mission , Lansdorp said . The Mars One probe will feature a robotic arm carrying a camera that will shoot continuous video , as well as a water experiment that will demonstrate the production of liquid water on the surface of Mars . `` The highest priority is to actually have liquid water on Mars , '' he said . This unmanned mission will also carry the winning projects from an experiment contest . There will be a worldwide university challenge giving teams the chance to propose tests to carry out on Mars . These could be science experiments , of course , but Mars One is also interested in `` fun '' experiments . One of Lansdorp 's visions , for instance , is a balloon with a camera attached to it that would film Mars from an altitude of 200 to 500 meters , which has never been done . The communications satellite will provide live video feed from surface of Mars to Earth , representing the first Mars synchronous communications satellite , Lansdorp said . Tourist trips to the Moon by 2043 ? Getting to Mars . Mars One was originally slated to land the first humans in 2023 , but the project has been delayed . After the first humans arrive in 2025 , the plan is send additional crews every two years , Lansdorp said . Right now , the idea is to send crews of four , but eventually bigger vehicles may become available to transport more people . Is there enough time to get the lander and satellite on their way by 2018 ? Sedivy said it takes about 3½ years from commitment to initiating a preliminary design to launch , so that gives his company about a year of leeway to study this concept before promising to execute it . That timeline is `` pretty favorable , '' he said Tuesday . But as to whether it 's enough time to develop the science side of things , that 's `` a little tricky , '' he said . It takes money . Mars One is looking at `` a range of funding scenarios . '' The total estimated budget for getting the first four humans to Mars is $ 6 billion . Lansdorp would not disclose how much money has been secured from partners and sponsors but said donations currently total more than $ 200,000 . A reality TV concept may help recoup costs . Lansdorp noted that Mars One will have the most unique video `` available in the solar system , '' which has a lot of value , and he hopes this will attract sponsors and partners . Media coverage will be a main funding source . But will the money come through ? Will the technology really be developed by 2018 for the unmanned mission and to send people there by 2025 ? Will four humans survive the journey in a tight space capsule and embrace a desolate planet as their home ? As Lansdorp himself said Tuesday , `` You ca n't go to Mars on excitement . '' Time will tell whether prospective applicants can go at all . Follow Elizabeth Landau at @ lizlandau .
More than 200,000 people say they want to go to Mars . The first mission will be unmanned , planned for 2018 launch . Lockheed Martin , Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. are studying concepts .