Many here know that I am firmly of the opinion that NASA / JPL has progressed its capabilities with largely autonomous lander packages… that we as a planet have scant need to put humans on Barsoom — except for the dubious “wow!” factor of it all. The radiation risks in transit, and on return, are… overwhelming — in a word.
And our next gen [nearly 100% robotic] ‘choppers and rovers can do it all at about one-fiftieth of the cost (financial and human).
All that said, there will come a day — when we solve the radiation shielding problem — when we might find a human Mars excursion to be a sensible (perhaps even exhilarating) risk to take — like around the year 2050. The below is in anticipation of that far off day. We may even “three-dee print our hab” — up there. Cool! See below:
…Construction is complete on a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot habitat that will simulate the challenges of a mission to Mars at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The habitat will be home to four intrepid crew members for a one-year Crew Health and Performance Analog, or CHAPEA, mission….
नमस्ते
Powerline Lies... 