Life on Mars will need to wait to be discovered as ExoMars mission hits the snag. The Russia and Europe launch date has been pushed back two years as progress seems difficult to make for the ExoMars project. The ExoMars mission has been rumored to be a Martian-life space expedition. Could this put Russia and Europe space relations at odds? And who is to blame? Putin may find the delay annoying, as he is known for his punctual and demanding nature. Meanwhile, SpaceX continues to make leaps in space exploration, possibly leaving Russia, Europe, NASA and even Putin standing on an empty Launchpad for another four years.
Russia and Europe Space Sparks Flutter
The groundbreaking ExoMars mission that was intended to search for life on Mars has been rescheduled for 2020, two years after its proposed 2018 launch. This will place the ExoMars mission in direct competition with the NASA 2020 mission to Mars. Both missions are rover projects, but now there may be a rover bot-war on the Red Planet. The reason for waiting until July 2020 and not any month in 2019 is due to the Earth’s alignment with Mars. This may put extra pressure on all nations involved in the current race to Mars.
SpaceX Might be Next to the Red Planet
Elon Musk and SpaceX have been looking toward the future of space exploration with Mars in their sights. It has been long rumored that SpaceX has manned missions to Mars planned within a decade. Rumors have also put Elon Musk into Red Planet retirement. With budget cuts and delayed launches, SpaceX may reach Mars before Russia and Europe. However, SpaceX and NASA are in bed, since most of SpaceX funding derives from NASA contracts. Thursday, May 5, 2016, SpaceX will launch a rocket with a Japanese replacement satellite. The SKY Perfect JSAT will be a telecommunication company’s satellites restock. The SpaceX Falcon 9 will launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Where is Putin?
Russian President Vladimir Putin was named the most powerful person by Forbes last year, and the year prior. It is difficult to believe that he has nothing to say about the ExoMars mission delay. Will President Putin willingly share the rover limelight with NASA in 2020? Putin is known for his flamboyant personality, but still no comment from the Russian president. Putin may not care, since he may have already booked a seat on the next SpaceX launch to Mars, or maybe even a Virgin spacecraft. Russia and Europe may be searching for nothing since life on Mars may just be great for movies.
