Destination Mars, but maybe not quite yet ...
Source: AFP |
May 6, 2013, Monday
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NASA and private sector experts now agree that a man or woman could be sent to Mars in the next 20 years, despite huge challenges.
Renewed interest in the red planet has triggered the launch of several initiatives in recent months, including one proposing a simple one-way trip to cut costs.
The American public also favors sending astronauts to Mars, according to a survey by non-profit group Explore Mars and aerospace giant Boeing.
The poll of more than a thousand people found that 71 percent of Americans expect humans will land on Mars by 2033.
The US space agency's chief, Charles Bolden, has stressed that "a human mission to Mars is a priority."
But the US financial crisis is a major obstacle.
"If we started today, it's possible to land on Mars in 20 years," said Scott Hubbard of Stanford University.
"It doesn't require miracles, it requires money and a plan to address the technological engineering challenges," said Hubbard, NASA's first Mars program director who successfully restructured the entire Mars program in the wake of mission failures.
Placing a cargo of 30-40 tons - the amount necessary to make a habitat on the planet - would be one of the greatest challenges, along with the problem of having enough fuel to get back, Hubbard said.
The Curiosity rover took a nail-biting seven minutes in August to make its descent on Mars. But it only weighed one ton.
The US$2.5 billion Curiosity mission, which is set to last at least two years, aims to study the Martian environment and to hunt for evidence of water in preparation for a possible future manned mission.
Robotic missions will therefore be necessary to prove the system works before scientists can even contemplate sending humans aboard.
NASA is developing a Space Launch System and the Orion capsule for distant space exploration.
Stephen Davison, manager of NASA's Space Biology and Physical Sciences Program said that scientists need a "minimum" of 10 years to complete research about the trip's impact on the human body before going to Mars.
Renewed interest in the red planet has triggered the launch of several initiatives in recent months, including one proposing a simple one-way trip to cut costs.
The American public also favors sending astronauts to Mars, according to a survey by non-profit group Explore Mars and aerospace giant Boeing.
The poll of more than a thousand people found that 71 percent of Americans expect humans will land on Mars by 2033.
The US space agency's chief, Charles Bolden, has stressed that "a human mission to Mars is a priority."
But the US financial crisis is a major obstacle.
"If we started today, it's possible to land on Mars in 20 years," said Scott Hubbard of Stanford University.
"It doesn't require miracles, it requires money and a plan to address the technological engineering challenges," said Hubbard, NASA's first Mars program director who successfully restructured the entire Mars program in the wake of mission failures.
Placing a cargo of 30-40 tons - the amount necessary to make a habitat on the planet - would be one of the greatest challenges, along with the problem of having enough fuel to get back, Hubbard said.
The Curiosity rover took a nail-biting seven minutes in August to make its descent on Mars. But it only weighed one ton.
The US$2.5 billion Curiosity mission, which is set to last at least two years, aims to study the Martian environment and to hunt for evidence of water in preparation for a possible future manned mission.
Robotic missions will therefore be necessary to prove the system works before scientists can even contemplate sending humans aboard.
NASA is developing a Space Launch System and the Orion capsule for distant space exploration.
Stephen Davison, manager of NASA's Space Biology and Physical Sciences Program said that scientists need a "minimum" of 10 years to complete research about the trip's impact on the human body before going to Mars.
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