NASA is planning a one-way mission to Mars in a programme called ‘Hundred Years Starship’ in which, a manned spacecraft will take astronauts to Mars and leave them there forever.NASA Ames Director Pete Worden revealed that one of NASA’s main research centres, Ames Research Centre, has received 1 million dollars funding to start work on the project.
Washington State University researchers had said that while technically feasible, a manned mission to Mars and back is unlikely to lift off anytime soon and so, a manned one-way mission to Mars would not only cut the costs by several fold, but also mark the beginning of long-term human colonization of the planet.
Mars is by far the most promising for sustained colonization and development because it is similar in many respects to Earth and, crucially, possesses a moderate surface gravity, an atmosphere, abundant water and carbon dioxide, together with a range of essential minerals.
Eventually they envision that outpost would reach self-sufficiency, and then it could serve as a hub for a greatly expanded colonization programme.
First, an appropriate site for the colony would be selected, preferentially associated with a cave or some other natural shelter, as well as other nearby resources, such as water, minerals and nutrients.
“Ice caves would go a long way to solving the needs of a settlement for water and oxygen. Mars has no ozone shield and no magnetospheric shielding, and ice caves would also provide shelter from ionizing and ultraviolet radiation,” said Schulze-Makuch.
The added that in addition to offering humanity a “lifeboat” in the event of a mega-catastrophe on Earth, a Mars colony would provide a platform for further scientific research.
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