Dianne McGrath was born the day before Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, and perhaps the universe was saying something in making that odd alignment. As McGrath's mother held her little daughter in her arms and watched the ghostly images of mankind's great leap on the black and white TV, she wasn't aware that her baby would eventually hope to go one better.

McGrath is on the shortlist to become one of the first people to land on Mars - 10 years from now. Whereas Armstrong returned to Earth - only to become increasingly grumpy - McGrath won't be coming back.

Dianne McGrath is on the shortlist to be one of the first to set foot on the Red Planet. Credit:Luis Ascui

"It's a one-way ticket. We don't have the technology for a return flight. I'll eventually die up there," she says, with the same kind of cheer she brings to recalling her childhood dreams of going on Luke Skywalker-style adventures.

McGrath was one of more than 200,000 people worldwide to apply for a place in the Netherlands-based Mars One program, an independent not-for-profit project that aims to create a permanent settlement on the red planet. The idea is to raise $6 billion via crowdfunding and the sale of commercial rights for what could be the most catastrophic reality TV show ever. (Although this season of The Bachelor may take some beating.)