![]() ![]() As Biswal told Universe Today via email, the distances involved also creates problems where astronaut safety and are power-generation are concerned: This makes resupply missions impractical since astronauts cannot wait that long to receive much-needed shipments of fuel, food, and other supplied. Because of this, launch windows between Earth and Mars only occur every two years when our planets are at the closest in their orbits to each other (i.e., when Mars is in "opposition" relative to the sun).ĭuring these windows, a spacecraft can make the journey from Earth to Mars in 150 to 300 days (about five to ten months). For instance, an obvious issue when it comes to planning missions to Mars is the sheer distance involved. The Mars approach and orbital insertionĪll of these challenges experience some degree of overlap with one or more of the others listed.Communications (in transit and on Mars).Radiation, microgravity, and astronaut health.The flight trajectory for Mars and corrective maneuvers.Based on their analysis, Biswal and Annavarapu identified 14 distinct challenges, which include (but are not limited to): Unfortunately, sending astronauts to Mars will inevitably entail a number of distinct challenges, which arise from logistics and technology to human factors and the distances involved.Īddressing these issues in advance is paramount if NASA and other space agencies hope to conduct the first crewed missions to Mars in the next decade and after. Multiple lines of evidence accumulated over the course of decades have also shown that it may have supported life at one time. Next to Earth, Mars is the most habitable location in the solar system (by terrestrial standards). ![]() As Biswal and Annavarapua indicated in their study and presentations, Mars occupies a special place in the hearts and minds of scientists and astrobiological researchers. Their research was also the subject of a presentation made during the seventh session of the Space Biology Virtual Workshop hosted by the Lunar Planetary Institute (LPI) – which took place between Jan. Both it and the presentation made at the SciTech Forum 2020 were conducted by Malaya Kumar Biswal and Ramesh Naidu Annavarapua-a graduate researcher and Associate Professor of Physics from Pondicherry University, India (respectively). The study that describes their research findings recently appeared online and has been accepted for publication by Advances in Aeronautical Sciences (publication date pending). This will present many challenges that will need to be addressed in advance, many of which have to do with simply getting the astronauts there in one piece! These challenges were the subject of a presentation made by two Indian researchers at the SciTech Forum 2020, an annual event hosted by the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA), RUDN University, and the American Astronomical Society (AAS).
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