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Author
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Topic: Back to the Moon? NASA looks beyond lunar return
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moonnut
Member Posts: 280
From: Andover, MN
Registered: Apr 2013
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posted 09-02-2014 09:53 PM
   
It took a cold war to ignite the space race that propelled us to the moon. I believe it will take another country other than the US going to the moon or beyond to ignite that fire again. |
328KF
Member Posts: 1388
From:
Registered: Apr 2008
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posted 09-03-2014 06:19 PM
Here is a great article that makes some very interesting points regarding the ARM mission and its' applications to moving on to Mars. Among the arguments, this is offered: Also in the Split Mission Concept: don’t take crew Earth-ascent/descent vehicle (Orion) to Mars and back; transfer in highly elliptical orbit (HEO) or a distant retrograde orbit (DRO) around the Moon on both the outbound and return legs. This saves taking about 20 metric tons of mass to and from Mars, and allows for some hardware reuse on later missions. ARM helps by demonstrating deep space rendezvous and docking and by having a habitat module in one variant of the human ARM mission. This option also shows how NASA is now including multiple missions in its Mars-forward planning: finally, they are getting away from the single-shot approach and moving to a sustained program. The full article is a good read. |
Lou Chinal
Member Posts: 1387
From: Staten Island, NY
Registered: Jun 2007
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posted 09-06-2014 02:54 PM
Any plans for a lunar orbit mapping mission, or a long duration lunar orbital stay, as some have suggested during the later phase of Apollo? |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 09-06-2014 03:03 PM
The lunar orbiters of recent years, including NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, JAXA's Kaguya, China's Chang'e 1 and 2 and ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 (to say nothing of NASA's GRAIL and LADEE) have pretty much ruled out the need for an extended crewed lunar orbital mission. |
Tykeanaut
Member Posts: 2235
From: Worcestershire, England, UK.
Registered: Apr 2008
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posted 10-22-2014 08:09 AM
I apologise if I'm missing something here but I cannot understand why Mars is cited as the holy grail for the prolonged existence of humans? When the sun dies all the planets will be destroyed. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 50516
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 10-22-2014 08:24 AM
The sun is not expected to exhaust its core hydrogen for another 5.4 billion years. No one is proposing Mars as a safe haven for that event. Rather, Mars is the most feasible destination for humanity to become a multi-planet species before expanding outwards, beyond our solar system (see projects like the 100 Year Starship and Icarus Interstellar). |
Tykeanaut
Member Posts: 2235
From: Worcestershire, England, UK.
Registered: Apr 2008
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posted 10-22-2014 12:49 PM
Fair enough Robert and thanks for your reply. My interest has been piqued once more by recently reading "Mission to Mars" by Buzz Aldrin.I just cannot believe that some would perhaps have no personal problems in colonizing another planet. A short-term mission would be difficult enough, both logistically, healthwise and psychologically. The whole scenario intrigues me. |
Blackarrow
Member Posts: 3604
From: Belfast, United Kingdom
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 10-22-2014 04:40 PM
quote:
Originally posted by Robert Pearlman:
...Mars is the most feasible destination for humanity to become a multi-planet species before expanding outwards, beyond our solar system
I enthusiastically agree with this. I just feel we should return to the Moon on the way to Mars. |
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