Posted on 11/24/2013 5:00:35 AM PST by lbryce
Billionaire Dennis Tito has revealed his scheme for dispatching two astronauts to the red planet as early as December 2017, saying that 'rare alignments' of planets should be exploited as the context of the project.
'Inspiration Mars' would be a 501-day US mission to the planet without landing on its surface and would take the opportunity of a rare alignment of Mars and earth so that the mission would require minimal rocket fuel, according to a report released on Wednesday.
Two separate trips would be necessary for the Mars Mission - Tito proposed that the first launch would involve a NASA rocket delivering the vehicle into orbit that would actually go onto Mars, and the second would take the astronauts which would later be united with their spacecraft.
"We propose to send a spacecraft bearing two astronauts, a man and woman, to the far side of Mars and return them to Earth, a voyage of 314 million miles in 501 days, in collaboration with NASA, in the name of America, and for the good of humanity,"stated the "Architecture Report Study" released by the Inspiration Mars team.
NASA is producing a new rocket to be used in the mission. The Space Launch System (SLS), which is expected to be finished by 2017. However, it has not yet issued a response to Tito's proposal.
Tito's organization would also use the Orbital Sciences Corporation's new Cygnus capsule which finished its first mission to the international space station in October. He rejected NASA's new Orion capsule, stating that it wouldn't meet mission requirements.
Tito later testified before the House Science Subcommittee on Space, stating: "The work of this subcommittee ... gave NASA the Space Launch System (SLS), the Orion program, and new commercial capabilities. We propose to combine all these elements, as we have explained in (the) Architecture Study Report." He added that "the United States will carry out a Mars flyby mission, or we will watch as others do it - leaving us to applaud their skill and their daring."
The window of opportunity for takeoff is very narrow, and to maximize it the rocket would have to launch between Christmas Day 2017 and January 5 2018. This could prove difficult as delays in space travel are notoriously common. "Even the very movement of planets seems to be saying 'Go'," the report states.
NASA has recently launched its 'Maven' orbiter into space, which is expected to reach Mars by September. The spacecraft will have to travel millions of miles and enter Mars' atmosphere which could never happen - out of the ten orbiters sent previously by NASA, only seven have been successful.
Russia plans to land a rover on Mars in 2018, rehabilitating its space program after the embarrassing failure of its Phobos-Grunt survey mission. There is also collaboration between Finnish, Russian and Spanish participants on a plan to deliver several dozen landers to Mars to form a meteorological observation network on its surface.
"Given Russia's clear recognition of the value and prestige of accomplishments in human space exploration, and their long-time interest in exploring Mars, my personal belief is that in all likelihood the Energia super-heavy rocket revival announcement signals Russian intent to fly this mission in 2021," Tito told the committee.
"We propose to send a spacecraft bearing two astronauts, a man and woman, to the far side of Mars and return them to Earth, a voyage of 314 million miles in 501 days, in collaboration with NASA, in the name of America, and for the good of humanity,"stated the "Architecture Report Study" released by the Inspiration Mars team."
Can anyone really take this at all seriously? I can't see how any of this is realistic. So, who is actually financing this thing? The impression is that he's going to be financing this himself yet somehow talks about a Mission for America, for Humanity".
Inspiration Mars:A Mission For America
Wikipdia:Inspiration Mars Foundation
-——to the far side of Mars and return them to Earth,-——
Hmmmmm does Mars have a farside?
Why one billionaire? Why not Elon Musk, and all the other billionaire babies who count this obsession with space as part of their pathological grandiosity?
They all want to claim space glories, but their all work on their own projects, dividing up the resources they have between them. If they combined them, it might actually work, but the poor dears have that ego to contend with.
In the Kennedy 60's, space exploration for the hell of it was more than acceptable.
We had yet to reach the electronic pinnacle the 40's, 50's and 60's scientists KNEW was just around the corner.
So ...
Here we are in the 2000's and our planet (NOT the climate ! ) needs attention to it's psychological health and well being.
In such a modern and .. hmmmm ... advanced? ... stage, we should, as a race, have reached some higher level or plane of consciousness by now.
Instead, we're digressing back into the mentality that God destroyed nations for.
Maybe that's it ...
Come quickly .. Lord.
Without landing? What’s the point?
Financing aside, this is the way to do it first just like we did with the moon.
After reading this thing through, it seems the only thing that’s driving the Russian billionaire to proposing this improbable fantasy of his is the impending close proximity of Earth and Mars. He keeps on talking about this small window of opportunity that would make the trip to Mars viable because of the relatively lesser resources a trip at this junction would require, mostly in the inability of the human condition to tolerate extended periods in space. At any other time, the Earth-Mars positioning would not be conducive to such an undertaking.
That window comes every year.
Take DC with you
Going to mars and back cheaply would involve about 5 or more launches. With each launch using a gravitational sling shot manuever between the earth and moon.
The first launch would put the return vehicle in mars orbit with food and fuel for the return.
The second would be fuel tanks, also in mars orbit.
Then you need a bigger, LEM like vehicle on the ground.
then you put the food and fuel for the outgoing mission into earth orbit.
The last thing you do is to put the astronauts on the way to mars.
You do this to use a smaller launch rocket which is cheaper.
Plus with a bigger payload you need more fuel, and then you need some more fuel to lift the fuel and even more fuel that lifts the fuel that lifts the fuel.
Many launches with small payloads and using a slingshot is the way to go.
But that means a very complicated and drawn out process with more things that can go wrong.
That was my favorite show as a kid
So basically you’re talking about catching both planets when their orbital velocities are at their optimum for speedy transit. I was looking at proximity alone.
I guess if I were a billionaire with an interest in space I would either get on board with asteroid mining or look into building a base on the moon. Faster more efficient propulsion systems are also a good thing to put money into.
I’m all for going to mars but believe that if you can live on the moon, you will prove the ability to live on mars. The moon is a far harsher environment to live in than Mars. Mars isn’t a hard vacuum, the temperature variations aren’t as extreme, and the planet does offer at least some radiation protection. On the downside, Mars is a long way away and its a lot harder to get off the surface once you’re there. I actually think the Russians are on the right track in concentrating on the Martian moons.
I would like to see them go to the moon and back, prove they are capable, maybe land there and drive a dune buggy around, smack a few golf balls around.
It would be good practice for a Mars mission even if they don’t land on Mars or the moon
In Kim Stanley Robinson's novel Red Mars, the first eight human settlers agreed to make a one way trip - to pave the way for future expansion missions. The future missions came - but there was always a chance that due to wars or budget cuts they might not have.
By the same token, one could ask why NASA sent Apollo VIII and Apollo X to orbit the Moon - without landing.
I guess you just know more about space travel than NASA.
Regards,
If they can’t land, then they are nothing but just another orbiter.
Those early missions to the Moon were in the early days of space exploration when capabilities were being tested. These are now known.
A manned mission to Mars is a huge investment in time and money.
But post-soetoro or bust, what is really needed on Mars are geologists with rock hammers.
To land on Mars requires sending an unmanned fuel depot and/or launch vehicle first. The gravity of the moon is low enough that we could take our own fuel when we did land.
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