NASA wants people on Mars 25 years from now

Deadly cosmic radiation, potential vision loss and bone atrophy are just some of the challenges that scientists face before a future astronaut can set foot on Mars, experts said Tuesday. senior officials of NASA.

The US space agency believes it can put humans on the red planet in 25 years, but the technological and medical hurdles are immense.

"The cost of solving these problems means that, with current or slightly longer budgets, it will take about 25 years to resolve them," said former NASA astronaut Tom Jones, who had carried out four space shuttle missions before retiring in 2001.

"We need to start using some key technologies," he told reporters.

Over an average distance of about 225 million kilometers, Mars poses scientific problems an order of magnitude greater than anything the Apollo lunar missions have encountered.

With today's rocket technology, it would take nine months for an astronaut to reach Mars; the physical cost of floating as long in zero gravity would be enormous.

For example, scientists believe that prolonged weightlessness can cause irreversible changes in blood vessels in the retina, resulting in poor vision.

And after a while at zero G, the skeleton begins to leach out calcium and bone mass.

Scientists do not yet know the effects of an alleged one-year mission on the surface of Mars, gravity being only one third of the Earth.

Best propulsion

One way to reduce the wear and tear of the human body is to dramatically reduce the travel time to Mars.

Jones called for nuclear propulsion systems that would have the added benefit of generating electricity on flights.

"If we start now, in 25 years, we could have these technologies to help us and protect us from these long transit times," he said.

Under current conditions, a simple trip to Mars would take so much time that an astronaut would receive the same amount of radiation that would normally be considered safe for a whole career.

"We do not yet have the solution in terms of protection, protection against cosmic rays and solar flares that you encounter during this transit time," Jones said.

Aerospace experts have identified several technologies that require rapid development, including a spacecraft capable of surviving hard-entry on Mars and landing fairly slowly, as well as the ability to lift people from the surface and back to Earth .

NASA currently has a new robotic lander called InSight that is approaching Mars and will land on November 26th after taking off from California on May 5th.

The project, with a budget of $ 993 million, aims to broaden human understanding of the conditions on Mars, document efforts to send explorers out there and reveal how rocky Earth were formed billions of years ago.

Jim Garvin, chief scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, said that InSight would fill in "critical unknowns" and help develop a key understanding of Mars.

In 2020, another mission will see NASA send a rover to Mars in order to determine the livability of the Martian environment, look for signs of ancient life and assess natural resources and resources. dangers for future explorers.

In addition, private companies such as SpaceX and many other countries are developing technologies that could be used in future Mars missions.

Some experts believe that the new exploration of the moon is the key to a future mission on Mars, as astronauts could learn more about water extraction or the use of technology and apply these lessons to future Mars missions.