The upcoming year is rumored to be NASA’s toughest one in regards to manned missions to Mars. Though all missions are expected to take off as of 2030, 2016 is one where NASA will be taking ‘crucial strides’ toward making those missions happen.
NASA is hell bent on making a manned Mars mission happen. The agency is optimistic about getting at least to Martian moons or Mars orbit by 2030. A Mars colonization is still ways away, though. The agency’s priority right now is safety.
Scott Kelly’s Return Will Kickstart 2016
The first step the agency will take in the new year comes with the return of NASA astronaut Scott Kelly from ISS. Once he’s on Earth soil, he will give the agency a lot of answers in regards to the effect of long-term space flights on the human body. A regular crew only spends about six months in orbit, but preparations for a mission to Mars would require 8 months of travel.
The effects of microgravity on the human body are taken very seriously by NASA. As such, they’re working to minimize the danger of bone density loss, vision impairment and muscle atrophy for any crew that will be on that mission to Mars.
ESA, Rocosmos and NASA Collaborate for Mars Colonization
On the other hand, NASA is also planning on sending a probe to examine the Martian surface. The probe called InSight, is set to look into the evolution and formation of the planet’s landscape. This is one of two probes that will be making it to Mars in the near future. The other is taking off from a collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency, and the Russian Federal Space Agency. Their program is called ExoMars, and the mission is to find out if there has ever been life on Martian territory. The power of these three agencies combined will surely bring some light to the many mysteries of Mars.
Stephen Hawking, Buzz Aldrin, and Elon Musk Endorse Mars Colonization
Many public figures have expressed their support for Mars missions. Science giants like Stephen Hawking have claimed that men on Mars are imperative for the survival of the human species. Why? Because it’s the best fit for colonization. Mars is the planet with the most similarities to Earth. It has the right temperature, atmosphere, landscape, and day length. A whole revolution around the sun (which is called a ‘sol’ as opposed to a day) takes 24 hours, 37 minutes, and 22 seconds in Martian atmosphere, which is pretty close to Earth. A Mars colonization would also be ideal because there’s water on top of its ice caps, and it was confirmed that liquid water flows on its surface from time to time.
Will China and CNAS Get to Mars Before NASA?
There’s still a long way to go for NASA, who has yet to design a spacesuit for deep space travel and deep space habitat. It also needs to build an interplanetary transportation system (which Blue Origin, Boeing, and SpaceX hope to facilitate). Despite NASA’s recent budget raise, $19.3 billion dollars likely won’t be enough to finance all of these ventures.
With all of these agencies and private companies collaborating, we might see men and women on Mars even before 2030. Though we could be surprised to see the China National Space Administration (CNSA) carrying out a Mars colonization by then, too.
