[2] In Packing for Mars, Roach searches for answers to questions about the gross, the bizarre, and the uncomfortable aspects of space travel.

The book's sixteen chapters cover the entire comedic spectrum of all things space-related and also include some study of the scientific side of space travel.

[3] The chapters discussing the various bodily functions of astronauts in space (going to the bathroom, having sex, vomiting[4]) and obscure testing procedures (animals in space, lying in beds for months, parabolic zero-g[5]) are balanced by the informative sections on topics such as the psychological effects of being in space, astronaut training, and the increasing use of human cadavers over crash test dummies in research.

Mary Roach, the author of Packing for Mars, was raised in Etna, New Hampshire and spent several years working as a freelance copy editor and investigating unpopular topics.

Roach explains that in addition to these problems, human beings are not in the slightest equipped or prepared to confront these challenges.