Until we find a faster mode of transportation or a better way to stay conditioned, we aren’t going anywhere. Watch astronauts coming back to Earth after 6 months in the space station, they can’t walk. Imagine two years in space in a very confined area, probably in some light sleep a lot of the time just to pass the time. Muscle atrophy of up to 20% was noted in flights lasting only a week or two. I’d guess it looks like a one way trip. Now that might be something to consider. A colony on Mars supplied by unmanned craft until somebody like “O” decides you are too expensive and aren’t returning on the investment. Let’s see, everyone watched as Apollo 11 and no one was watching Apollo 13. Hard to imagine we’d keep our interest after a year or two of the same broadcast antics from Mars.
This is ground control to Major Tom.....
>> Until we find a faster mode of transportation or a better way to stay conditioned, we aren’t going anywhere. Watch astronauts coming back to Earth after 6 months in the space station, they can’t walk. Imagine two years in space in a very confined area, probably in some light sleep a lot of the time just to pass the time. Muscle atrophy of up to 20% was noted in flights lasting only a week or two. I’d guess it looks like a one way trip. Now that might be something to consider. A colony on Mars supplied by unmanned craft until somebody like “O” decides you are too expensive and aren’t returning on the investment. Let’s see, everyone watched as Apollo 11 and no one was watching Apollo 13. Hard to imagine we’d keep our interest after a year or two of the same broadcast antics from Mars. <<
We already have the technology for short duration trips to Mars using Nuclear Rockets and i am not talking about Project Orion either, but a thermal nuclear rocket that is many time more efficient than chemical rockets and can be used to supply electrical power to the craft while in “idle” mode. Not to mention the promising tech that is VASIMIR coupled with Space Based Nuclear Reactors than can shave down the transit times to mars to a couple of mere months by providing constant thrust the way there and back. Not to mention the inflatable space hab tech from bigelow which could make a manned mission to Mars ala. Apollo 8 feasible if we really wanted to do it. I would say if you built a rotating section of the space craft that would even supply 1/4 to 1/3 G force it would prevent a lot of the Zero-G deterioration that you would encounter along the way.
The main thing stopping the use of Nuclear Rocketry in space is silly UN space treaties that make no sense.
UN out of Space.