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The main problems of flying to Mars (11 photos). The flight to Mars is canceled When will the landing on Mars

Space has always attracted humanity, people have sought to conquer the starry peaks and find out what the heavenly abyss hides. There were first steps on the moon which heralded the great progress of the whole world. Each country strives to make a particularly significant discovery, which is sure to be saddened in history. However, the level of scientific achievements and modern technical equipment do not allow conquering distant and mysterious celestial bodies. How many times, in theory, expeditions to Mars have been carried out, the implementation of which in practice is currently very difficult. But scientists believe that in the next decade, a human foot will set foot on the red planet. And who knows what surprises await us there. The hope of existence excites many minds.

A manned expedition to Mars is bound to take place someday. And today even the approximate dates established by scientists are known.

Flight perspective

Today, an expedition to Mars is planned for 2017, but it is not known whether this will come true or not. This date is due to the fact that at this particular time it will be as close as possible to the orbit of Mars. The flight will take two or even two and a half years. The ship will have a mass of about 500 tons, just such a volume is required for the astronauts to feel at least comfortable.

The main creators of the Mission to Mars program are the USA and Russia. It was these powers that made significant discoveries in the field of the conquest of outer space. The development concept covers activities until 2040.

All stakeholders would like to send the first astronauts to a distant planet in 2017, but in reality these plans are difficult to implement. It is very difficult to create a single huge one, so it was decided to work in complexes. They will be delivered by booster rockets in parts to the orbit of the planet. At the same time, it is calculated to create a fully automated process in order to minimize the energy costs of astronauts. This will gradually create the necessary infrastructure in space.

A manned expedition has been planned for about half a century. "Mars" is a lost station of the USSR back in 1988, which for the first time transmitted to earth photographs of the surface of red soil and one of the. Since then, different countries have launched interplanetary stations to study Mars.

Problems with the Mars expedition

An expedition to Mars will take a long time. To date, humanity has the experience of a long stay in space. Valery Polyakov is a doctor who spent a year and six months in Earth's orbit. With correct calculations, this time may be enough to reach Mars. It is very likely that it may increase by another six months or so. The big problem is that immediately after landing on a foreign planet, astronauts will need to start reconnaissance work. They will not have the opportunity to adapt and get used to it.

Difficult flight conditions

Going to Mars requires completely new technologies. A number of important conditions must be met. Only in this case, the probability that the first expedition to Mars will still be successfully carried out increases to the maximum. It is necessary to take into account a number of factors when developing a project to conquer Martian space. One of the most basic is the life support of the crew. It will be implemented if a closed cycle is created. The necessary reserves of water and food are supplied into orbit with the support of special ships. In the case of Mars, spacecraft passengers will only need to rely on personal strength. Scientists create methods for regenerating water and obtaining oxygen using the electrolysis method.

Radiation is another important factor. This is a serious problem for humans. Various studies are able to provide answers to questions related to the influence of electromagnetic energy on the body as a whole. Such exposure is likely to lead to cataracts, changes in the genetic composition of cells and the rapid growth of cancer cells. The developed medicines cannot completely protect people from the harmful effects of radiation. Therefore, it is necessary to think over the creation of some kind of shelter.

Weightlessness

Weightlessness is also an important issue. The absence of gravity leads to changes in the body. It is especially problematic to deal with the emerging illusion, which leads to the appearance of an incorrect perception of distance. There is also a serious hormonal restructuring, fraught with unpleasant consequences. The problem is that there is a strong loss of calcium. Bone tissue is destroyed and muscle atrophy is provoked. Doctors are very concerned about all these adverse effects of weightlessness. Usually, after returning to Earth, the space crew team is engaged in the active restoration of depleted mineral reserves in the body. It takes about a year or more. To reduce the adverse effects of the absence of gravity, special short-radius centrifuges have been developed. Experimental work with them is still being carried out today, since it is difficult for scientists to determine how long such a centrifuge should work to create favorable conditions for astronauts.

All this is difficult not only from a scientific and technical point of view, but also incredibly expensive.

medical problems

Medicine requires special attention. It is necessary to create such conditions that, if necessary, during the expedition to Mars, it would be possible to carry out a simple surgical operation. There is a high probability that an unknown virus or microbe lives on the red planet, which can destroy the entire crew in a matter of hours. Physicians of several specializations must be present on board. Very good therapists, psychologists and surgeons. It will be necessary to periodically take tests from the crew members, to monitor the condition of the whole organism. This moment requires the presence of the necessary medical equipment on board.

Failures in the sensation of day will lead to improper metabolism and the appearance of insomnia. This will need to be controlled as much as possible and eliminated by taking special drugs. Work will be carried out daily in very difficult and extreme technological conditions. A fleeting weakness will inevitably lead to serious mistakes.

Psychological stress

The psychological burden on the entire crew of the ship will be enormous. The possibility that for astronauts the flight to Mars may be the last expedition, will inevitably lead to the emergence of fears, depression, feelings of hopelessness and depressive states. And that is not all. Under negative psychological pressure during an expedition to Mars, people will inevitably begin to enter into conflict situations that can provoke irreparable consequences. Therefore, the selection for shuttles is always carried out very, very carefully. Future astronauts undergo a lot of psychological tests that reveal their strengths and weaknesses. It is important to create the illusion of a familiar world on the ship. For example, consider the change of the year, the presence of vegetation, and even the imitation of bird voices. This will make it easier to stay on an alien planet and mitigate stressful situations.

Crew selection

Question number one: "Who will fly to a distant planet?" The space community is sensibly aware that such a breakthrough should be made by an international crew. You cannot place all the responsibility on one country. In order to prevent the failure of the expedition to Mars, it is necessary to think through every technical and psychological moment. The crew should include true experts in many areas who will provide the necessary assistance in emergency situations and be able to easily adapt to the new environment.

Mars is the distant dream of many astronauts. But not everyone seeks to nominate their candidacy for this flight. Because such a journey is very dangerous, fraught with many mysteries and may be the last. Although there are desperate daredevils who yearn for their names to be included in the coveted lists of participants in the Expedition to Mars program. Volunteers are already applying. Even gloomy forecasts do not stop them. Scientists openly warn that for astronauts this is - quite possibly - the last expedition. Modern technologies will be able to deliver a spacecraft to Mars, but it is not known whether it will be possible to launch from the planet.

Machismo

All scientists are unanimous in the opinion that women should be excluded from the first expedition. The arguments in favor of this are:

  • the female body is not well studied in the space zone, it is not known how its complex hormonal system will behave under conditions of prolonged weightlessness,
  • physically the lady is less hardy than the man,
  • numerous tests and scientific studies confirm that the psychology of a woman is by nature less adapted to extreme situations, they are more prone to depression in a state of hopelessness.

Why go to this planet at all?

All scientists unanimously declare that this planet is very similar to our Earth. It is believed that once the same rivers flowed on its surface and plants and trees grew. To establish the reasons why it broke off, it is necessary to carry out research activities. This is a complex study of soil and air. Mars rovers have already taken samples many times, and these data have been studied in detail. However, there is very little material, so it was not possible to draw up a general picture. It was only established that it is possible to live on the Red Planet under certain conditions.

It is believed that if there is a possibility of organizing a colony on Mars, then this should be used. Living on our plane is potentially risky. For example, when a huge meteorite enters the Earth's atmosphere, the complete destruction of all life will occur. But with the development of Martian space, one can hope for the salvation of part of the human race.

In modern conditions, overpopulation of our planet will help overcome the demographic crisis.

Many political leaders are interested in what the depths of the Red Planet conceal. After all, natural resources are running out, which means that new sources would be very helpful.

In the future, Mars can be used as a testing ground for experiments (for example, atomic explosions), which are very dangerous for the Earth.

Similarities and differences between the blue and red planets

Mars is similar to Earth in many ways. For example, its day is only 40 minutes longer than Earth's. On Mars, the seasons also change, there is an atmosphere similar to ours, which protects the planet from cosmic and solar radiation. NASA research has confirmed that there is water on Mars. The Martian soil is similar in its parameters to the earth. There are places on Mars whose landscape and natural conditions are similar to those on Earth.

Naturally, there are much more differences between the planets, and they are incomparably more significant. A brief list of differences - 2 times less low air temperature, lack of solar energy, low atmospheric pressure and a weak magnetic field, high radiation levels - indicates that life on Mars, familiar to earthlings, is not yet possible.

MOSCOW, 12 Oct— RIA Novosti, Irina Khaletskaya. About 200 thousand people agreed to participate in the Mars colonization project, which was proposed by the commercial company Mars One. As planned by the organizers, the landing of the first people on the Red Planet will occur no earlier than in 10 years. In the meantime, the participants are preparing for the flight physically and mentally. For five years, only one hundred colonists from all over the world have passed the selection, from Russia only four girls have reached the semi-finals. But the selection continues.

They are waiting for a one-way flight and a responsible mission. The RIA Novosti correspondent found out why the girls want to fly to Mars and how developed the Mars One project is.

Space is forever

One of the semi-finalists, Anastasia Stepanova, was born in Uzbekistan. Despite the fact that the space industry was not developed in the republic, the girl wanted to become an astronaut. She later entered the Faculty of Journalism at Moscow State University, studying space journalism under Yuri Baturin.

“Together we wrote the book “I wish you a good flight,” these words were said by Academician Korolev to Yuri Gagarin before the start.”

Anastasia heard about the Mars One project in the news and decided: “Either now or never. I filled out a questionnaire, made a video message, passed a psychological test. I think many did not even understand where they sent their application, but no one forbade them to try themselves.”

© Photo: Mars Society Scientists disagree on which planet to explore is a priority. "There is no atmosphere on the Moon, and it cannot become autonomous. From the point of view of accessibility, the Moon looks more real, but as a frontier for expanding the habitat of mankind, the only real candidate accessible to modern technologies is Mars," says Olga, head of the Mars-Tefo interactorium Cherkashin.

Another "Martian", Ekaterina Ilyinskaya, promised herself in childhood that if she had the opportunity to fly into space, she would definitely use it: "This is an exciting adventure that I myself will never be able to organize." Ekaterina is a master of sports in bench press, a champion of the Moscow region in wingsuit piloting, loves extreme sports, enjoys long-distance road trips, mountain climbing, skydiving, plus rides a motorcycle.

Mars we go

The Mars One commercial project is led by the Dutchman Bas Lansdorp, who has eight associates on his team. The company selects future "Martians" and prepares them for flight, but does not build spaceships itself. This, according to Lansdorp, will be done by contractors that Mars One is willing to pay. According to the company's forecasts, the implementation of the plan will require about six billion dollars, and another four billion will cost each further launch of the ship.


Funds are raised in various ways, including through crowdfunding platforms or through private investors. The organizers of the mission plan to make a similar documentary film about the life of people on the Red Planet, which will be broadcast on TV.

The organizers of the project are going to use ready-made prototypes of other companies. First, Mars One will launch a drone to search for a place to build a colony. Next, a landing module and a communications satellite will be sent from Earth to Mars. The design of the module is planned to be based on the Phoenix module used by NASA in 2007. The landing of the first colonists of Mars One was scheduled for 2025, but the dates were repeatedly shifted - now we are talking about 2031. First, four colonists will go to Mars, two more years later, four more, and so on (in total, the first settlement will consist of 24 aliens from Earth).

What to do there and how not to go crazy

The participants do not yet know what exactly they will do on the Red Planet: duties will be distributed after the final selection. Basically, they will have to expand the residential complex and understand the question "is there life on Mars?"

"Imagine: you are on a planet where there is no one else. You must have skills that will help you survive. You need to know engineering, be a mechanic, doctor, biologist, geologist. If something happens to one crew member, he must be replaced by another ", says Anastasia.

Anastasia began to prepare for such a harsh life in advance: she took rescue courses, received a second education in the specialty "Mechatronics and Robotics". She had to change her diet to get used to the "Martian" food: excluded sugar, fat, milk and cheese. The girl does yoga, swimming and running to maintain her tone. Nastya says she doesn't like to run, but she has to.

The second semi-finalist Ekaterina often participates in bench press competitions, so she knows how to properly prepare her body for serious loads.

"I have two educations - psychology and fitness. Both will come in handy on Mars. There you will need to keep yourself in shape, and I know how to do it more efficiently. I have knowledge in the field of biology, anatomy, if you still learn, from me a good doctor will come out," the future colonist is convinced.

Egoists have no place here

According to the calculations of astrophysicists, the flight from Earth to Mars will take about seven months. The space of the ship is small, no shower, only wet wipes, constant fan noise and a three-hour warm-up. There is no doubt that the "journey" will be difficult.


Last year, Anastasia applied for another project to study the Red Planet - Mars-160. It was conducted by the American non-profit organization Mars Society with the participation of the Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences. For three months, the girl and other participants were in complete isolation at a research station in the Utah desert and a month in the Arctic. They worked in space suits and saw only each other. So they wanted to prove that it is possible to live in conditions similar to those on Mars.

"In the desert, I was convinced that this is mine. It is very difficult to work in isolation with the same people. Therefore, egoism should not go beyond the permissible level. Already now there is a set of rules that can help people not go crazy. Yes, and psychologists from the Earth will work remotely with the crew," says Anastasia.

Never see loved ones

Not everyone in reality is ready to live the rest of the days in isolation without the opportunity to see their loved ones. Anastasia believes that it is too early to prepare loved ones: if she passes the final, then another 10 years of training await her.

"Many of the colonists had children during the five years of selection, but did not quit participating in Mars One. I have not made such plans yet, I have other tasks. But maybe the mission will change, and we will spend a few years there and return?" - the girl thinks.

Catherine, on the contrary, warned her relatives in advance. He says they were philosophical: "I'd rather fly to Mars than hitchhike somewhere in Colombia."

About escape and destiny

No one knows how the flight and stay on Mars will affect the human body. Perhaps the experience of the colonists will be useful in medicine and will allow new discoveries to be made. “Of course, there are risks here. We may not fly at all. But at least after us it will be safer to fly to Mars,” Anastasia added.

© Photo: Mars Society The influence of private companies on the space industry, according to the scientist, is an absolutely normal development of the space industry. “At first, these are only state projects, then commercial companies are included, and then it becomes available to anyone. We will live to see the time when private and student research satellites will surf the expanses of the solar system,” says Cherkashina.


People who sign up for the flight are sacrificing everything for the sake of space exploration, the "Martian" believes. This is not entertainment, and certainly not an escape from problems on Earth.

"We understand what we are getting into. Space is beautiful because you can never outgrow it. No matter how much we develop, we will still open up new horizons that we will have to explore. And even if Mars One does not take place, I believe that I take part in it not in vain."

Ekaterina also does not worry that everything can end fatally: “I have such thoughts every day when I leave the Moscow Ring Road. Crashing in a car accident is much more likely than dying on Mars. I’m used to this thought.”

Criticism of Mars One

The technical and financial feasibility of the project, as well as the ethics of the actions of its founders, have been repeatedly called into question by scientists.
Astrophysicist Professor Joseph Roche was one of the 100 finalists who was dropped from the program after being interviewed by Medium magazine. Roche stated that the organizers took money from the participants and the testing was carried out carelessly. Anastasia explains this simply: the specialists physically could not come to each participant or send him money for a ticket. So we talked through Skype. And as a contribution, she paid 300 rubles.

Of course, the exam was not as serious as in Roscosmos or NASA. I think that in the last stages we will have a rigorous selection of the best of the best, those who really understand why they fly to Mars," the participant believes.

Total flaws

Researchers have found several serious technical miscalculations in the Mars One project. So, according to Alexander Ilyin, a member of the expedition to the station in Utah, it is not clear what the colonists are going to eat, what sizes of the greenhouse are needed and where to get lighting for it:

"In the end, all Martians will be vegetarians or someone will send them canned food for billions of dollars?"

Ilyin remarks that it is not clear how the colonists will get water. We need energy, huge masses of soil, time and, again, a lot of money. "If the bulldozer is powered by solar panels, where are the estimates of its mass? It looks like it's not a simple rover, which is drawn in the pictures. What about Martian dust? Will the colonists sweep it away from the batteries?" the scientist asks.

Also, representatives of Mars One do not explain how the colonists will land on the surface of Mars in a way that is safe for humans. Perhaps they do not have specific calculations.

“In general, technical problems can be solved if there are funds for this. Everything is possible, but not in the same way as the guys from Mars One. For them, this is not science fiction, but a fairy tale,” Ilyin is sure.

Anastasia and Ekaterina say that the organizers keep them informed of events and send letters with reports.

"It's difficult to start a project like this without capital. In 2013, no company had agreements to build equipment, now, as far as I know, two flight concepts have been provided. Mars One recently received six million dollars from an investment company, in November we they will announce the date of the last stage. Humanity has every chance to implement the project," Anastasia is sure.

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Landing a man on Mars today has ceased to be a fantasy. The guys from the American space agency NASA say with confidence that the colonization of the Red Planet will definitely begin in the middle of the 21st century. But as to who will be the first to send a man to Mars, they are not so sure. NASA is going to do this approximately in the 2030s, but some private companies promise to surpass them and arrange a manned flight to Mars much earlier, and most importantly, for astronauts this will not necessarily be a one-way trip. In this article, we will consider the most likely candidates for the first colonizers of Mars.

Why do we need to go to Mars at all?

Current research on the Red Planet is carried out through orbiting telescopes, interplanetary stations, spacecraft and rovers. All this made it possible to make many interesting discoveries, such as the Martian channels and the presence of water on the Red Planet, but many theories have also appeared, to confirm which it is advisable to send a person there.

Earth explorers will have to find on Mars signs of germs in the past, and perhaps even their present day. And this will confirm the existence of life on another planet in the solar system.


Space exploration is inevitable, so why not start now?

One of the priorities of the study of Mars is checking it for suitability for future resettlement there a person. After all, even Stephen Hawking was sure that sooner or later we will not be able to live on our Earth because of a world war or a global cataclysm.

Paradoxically, on Mars we will be able to learn a lot of new things not only about the Earth, but also about the distant corners of space.

USSR and Mars

For all known reasons, the USSR will no longer be able to send anything to Mars, but the Soviet plans for this planet deserve attention.

In those days, only science fiction writers talked about landing a man on Mars, but scientists seriously considered the possibility of creating a spacecraft for a manned flight.

One of the first major projects was martian manned complex(IPC). It was supposed to be assembled in near-Earth orbit from different blocks. The original weight of the ship would have left 1650 tons (!). Upon returning to Earth, only a part of the ship weighing 15 tons would remain. The total flight time was to be 2.5 years.

But soon Soviet engineers presented more progressive projects. heavy interplanetary ship. There were several variants of such ships that could fit up to 4 crew members.


It got to the point that in 1960 the Central Committee of the CPSU even scheduled the start of the flight of a ship not yet built for June 8, 1971. But the project had to be closed, because the so-called "lunar race" began.

Who knows, if the collapse of the USSR had not happened, it is possible that the first colonists would have planted a red flag on the Red Planet ...

Inspiration Mars Foundation

For a change, let's consider applicants for a regular flight to Mars without landing. Indeed, for the first time to see this planet with your own eyes, and not on the screen or through the lens of a telescope, is also worth a lot.

The non-profit organization Inspiration Mars Foundation has in its plans already in 2018 make the first manned flyby of Mars.

The entire journey will take 501 days. The flyby trajectory is calculated in such a way as to spend the least amount of fuel. The crew will consist of a man and a woman. This couple should safely fly to the Red Planet, circle it and return to Earth.

Such a flight is of considerable importance in terms of studying the physiological and psychological state of a person in interplanetary space. The data obtained will be very useful when we go to Mars for the purpose of landing.

Aurora Program

The European Space Agency also has its own plan for the Martian mission. These comrades want to land a man on Mars closer to 2033.

The agency's leadership says that due to low funding, they will be forced to resort to international cooperation. For example, Russia is involved in one of the stages of the program called ExoMars.

While within the framework of Aurora, launches of vehicles for the study of the Red Planet are being carried out, a manned flight to the Moon (2024) and an unmanned flight to Mars (2026) are planned. And if everything is in order with funding, a manned flight to Mars is quite possible. There is a possibility that Russia will be involved in this.

NASA

The guys from NASA constantly complain about the lack of funding. If you think about it, every organization in the world that lives at the expense of its state has such problems. But NASA is an American agency! This country without a twinge of conscience declares that it rules the world. So why can't you guys support something as important as conquering other planets by leaving it to private companies? And, well, yes, it is necessary to arrange economic wars with the Bear ... The US government has already broken off plans for Mars several times for its space agency.

Be that as it may, NASA is determined to land a man on Mars soon, which should happen within the next 20 years. Exact dates have not yet been announced. The flight will take place when all vehicles are ready, and provisions with water and oxygen supplies have been previously delivered to the Red Planet.

Today's NASA plan is well detailed and consists of three phases:

  1. "Support to the Earth". At this stage, it is supposed to study the conditions of life on other planets. This is necessary to create life support systems for people on Mars. In addition, it is required to work out technologies that can save astronauts in interplanetary space.
  2. "Testing Ground". The moon will be the testing ground. So far, NASA is not sure that they will necessarily land on the Earth’s satellite and equip a base there in order to “train” in front of Mars. Perhaps it will be enough to stay in the orbit of the moon. In any case, these events are planned to be held until 2020.
  3. "Complete independence from the Earth". After careful preparation, people will have to go to near-Martian orbit. The following options are discussed below:
    • A temporary base is being set up on one of the satellites of Mars. And already from there people together with the equipment will go to the planet;
    • Astronauts will immediately land on Mars and organize a permanent colony.

NASA experts have high hopes for 3D printing technology in terms of creating a sustainable and self-contained habitat.

It is also interesting that at one of the press conferences, representatives of the agency noted that the flight to Mars must be international. No strife between Russia and the United States should be displayed on scientific research, and especially on the study of other planets.

In a word, the guys from NASA are confident that if everything goes according to plan, then by the end of this century, all problems regarding the possibility of living on Mars will be solved.

Centenary spaceship

The project with the same name was developed by one of the scientific centers of NASA. It is much cheaper than the main plan of the space agency, since the colonists will be sent to Mars forever.

If the project succeeds, the selected volunteers will fly to the Red Planet as early as 2030. With them they will have a small nuclear reactor, the necessary equipment and means for the production of food, water and oxygen.

Roscosmos

Russia, as mentioned earlier, is taking part in a joint project with the European Space Agency. This project is called "Exomars". But its task is only to deliver research modules into orbit and the surface of the Red Planet. Of course, Rokosmos has plans to send a man to Mars by the middle of the century, but he obviously will not be the first there ...


The Proton-M rocket was used for the ExoMars mission

By the way, in Russia in 2015 the Mars-500 program, within which an imitation of a manned flight to Mars was conducted. The results of the experiment contribute to the further preparation of the participants of the expedition to Mars.

Russia can also contribute to reducing the flight time to the Red Planet. Now Roscosmos, together with Rosatom, is working on a fundamentally new nuclear power engine and a transport module that will be compatible with it. With such an engine, it will be possible to get from earth to Mars in just a few months.

Mars One

Oriented by 2026, the Dutch company Mars One plans to send 4 colonists to the Red Planet without the possibility of returning them back to Earth, as is the case with the Centenary Spaceship project. It is noteworthy that volunteers from different countries should be among the colonists.


This is what a Mars One colony should look like

If the idea comes true, then in 2027 the colonists will land. However, before it is necessary to have time to send living quarters, life support systems and cargo containers to Mars. All this stuff should be waiting for the rover there, which will be engaged in preliminary unloading.

This project is periodically compromised by the fact that it is simply untenable. Even some candidates for the flight say that the organizers of this movement did not raise the necessary money, but continue to hope for sponsorship.

As of February 2019 it became known that the Mars One project went bankrupt, so we give all the laurels to our winner.

SpaceX

In September 2016, the head of SpaceX, Elon Musk, whom many identify with Tony Stark himself, presented a program for the accelerated exploration of Mars. The first landing man will be able to carry out in 2024, and over the next 30 years, the Martian colony should increase to 1 million people. Elon emphasizes that it is time for earthlings to take off and become an interplanetary civilization.

Learn more about the spacecraft that will take humans to Mars in a video provided by SpaceX:

The implementation of the project of the spacecraft "Interplanetary transport system" will reduce the cost of a flight of one person to 200 thousand dollars. With current technology, that figure is $10 billion. Significant savings can be made on the possibility of reusable system components, and on specially selected fuel, the production of which is planned to be carried out directly in the orbit of Mars.

To date, the leading space agencies recognize the SpaceX program as the most promising in terms of the exploration of Mars. This is largely due to their Falcon 9 shuttle rocket, which today delivers cargo to the ISS. Its feature is the ability to land the first stage for reuse. Such technology is perfectly suited for Martian missions.


Many call Elon Musk a dreamer, because he sees the end result of his undertaking as the resettlement (or even evacuation) of earthlings to Mars, when others see this planet either as an object of scientific research, or as an opportunity to make money on space tourism.

However, the Musk project has a lot of support from the public and famous people. So recently, Leonardo DiCaprio mentioned that he signed up for a flight to Mars. It was after SpaceX published their colonization plan.

Boeing

In early October 2016, Boeing made a big announcement that it would compete with SpaceX to land a man on Mars.

Boeing management assured the public that they have everything for these purposes. They are sure that it is their rocket that will take the first person to the Red Planet, although detailed arguments have not yet been provided. Unless they mention new hypersonic engines that will exceed the speed of sound three times.

By the way, Boeing rockets have repeatedly delivered people to the moon.

Apparently, today these guys are primarily betting on space tourism, and not on the exploration of Mars scientifically.

Conclusion

The clear superiority in the Martian race today is held by private companies. The biggest promise comes from SpaceX with their rather ambitious plans. This company owns advanced technologies in terms of space travel and is not as limited in funds as NASA, Roscosmos or the European Space Agency. Of course, if all the departments had joined forces, surely the earthlings would have begun to conquer Mars much earlier, but the situation in the world fell in such a way that political strife was more important than progress.

In view of the recent presidential elections in the Russian Federation, attention to Russian leader Vladimir Putin has increased even more. News about the ruler of Russia does not leave the TV screens, and on the Internet, Andrey Kondrashov's new documentary "Putin" breaks records in terms of the number of views. Among the mass of interesting topics that were touched upon in the film, it was also about space. In particular, he spoke about the grandiose intentions of our country to conquer the galaxy. With the help of unmanned and manned vehicles, a deeper study of the Earth's satellite is planned under the "lunar program", and a little later - the study of Mars.

When Putin plans to conquer Mars

“Deep space exploration” will begin next year, Putin announced. The flight to Mars in 2019 will be carried out by unmanned spacecraft, but "manned launches" are also planned in the future. In the near future, Russian scientists are planning to “launch a mission towards Mars,” said Vladimir Putin. According to the head of state, Russia now has every chance to make a big leap in the field of deep space exploration. He explained that now many countries have a fairly high level of technological development, including our country. Therefore, Russia "has a chance to become leaders." At present, there is an excellent base for the next step forward, which should be used as a springboard for a sharp move up. Thus, Vladimir Putin made it clear to all Russian viewers that space exploration is one of the most important strategic tasks in terms of the development of our state.

How the flight will be carried out

The flight to Mars in 2019 will be carried out by an unmanned interplanetary spacecraft, which Elon Musk is working on. The scientist assured that by the beginning of next year the spacecraft will be able to fly to the Red Planet, although it will not be able to stay there for a long time. Recall that in 2016, a similar group of drones failed and failed to successfully dock with the surface of Mars. Then the TGO orbiter and the landing module Schiaparelli participated in it, which crashed at the moment of contact with the planet.

Further, Roskosmos will join the work. In 2020, he plans to launch the second phase of the exploration mission to Mars. It will be called "ExoMars" and will be the result of joint work with the European Space Agency. The mission will consist of two vehicles: a European rover and a landing platform developed by Russian engineers. The aim of the launch will be:

  • landing on the surface of Mars landing module;
  • climate measurements over a long period of time;
  • verification of existing atmospheric models.

If the second mission is successful, Elon Musk plans to create a permanent colony on the Red Planet by 2022. Its goal will be to deliver the necessary cargo for people, the first of which will be able to set foot on the surface of Mars in 2024. It is still difficult to imagine that the first space tourists will land on the Red Planet in six years, but the rapid development of the technical base makes it possible to think so.

In the meantime, a flight to Mars is only in development, Putin is already talking about the “lunar program” of 2019 in action. Its main task will be to explore the poles of the moon. Russian cosmonauts are planned to land there to test the hypothesis of the presence of water in its bowels.

In contrast to the peaceful study of deep space by Russian scientists, US President Donald Trump made a shocking statement. During a visit to an air force base in California, he announced the need to create a national space force. He explained his decision by the fact that “space is also a battlefield”, the same as territories on water, land and in the air. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin immediately reacted to Trump's speech. He commented on the American leader's speech as follows: "The United States is opening Pandora's box." It turns out that for some countries space is a huge field for general scientific work and study, while for others it is a place for wars and appropriation of territories.

Vladimir Putin on flights to Mars and other planets: video

So says Gilles Clement, an employee of the International Space University in Toulouse (France). He analyzed the results of pre-flight and post-flight examinations of six European cosmonauts who worked on the Soviet Mir space station in 1988-1999 from 14 to 189 days. The data are published only now, as the cosmonauts themselves demanded to classify them for ten years.

There were no special health problems during the flight, but on Earth it turned out that it was difficult for people to stand: the blood does not reach the brain and consciousness turns off. Decreased hemoglobin content and blood pressure. Despite the special simulator available at the station, muscles and bones weakened due to weightlessness, up to 2% of bone mass was lost per month. Even after a year of rest on Earth, the bones are not completely restored. Already after a week of being in weightlessness, the volume of the heart decreases by a quarter, which is the reason for the weakened blood circulation. The same phenomena were observed in cosmonauts and astronauts who worked on the International Space Station. For six months of flight, they lose 13% of the volume of the calf muscles. Fat metabolism is disturbed, part of the muscle tissue can be replaced by fat.

On rats, it was shown that already after 12 hours of weightlessness, the genes responsible for the synthesis of the main muscle proteins, actin and myosin, almost stop working in the animal. Meanwhile, a flight to Mars can take 6-9 months one way, and although the gravity there is only 0.376 of Earth's, it is unlikely that travelers after a “rest” in weightlessness will be able to move and work even with such gravity.

The radiation threat is even more serious. The Earth's magnetic field protects us from the ionizing radiation of the Sun and the Galaxy by deflecting radiation particles. Without a magnetic shield that attenuates radiation, the existence of complex organisms on Earth would be impossible. The orbits of space stations are kept within the magnetosphere of our planet, where the radiation is weakened by ten times, and then the astronauts need anti-radiation protection. When flying to the moon, American astronauts received significant doses of radiation.

What can be done so that people still fly to Mars and return in good health? As for the harmful effects of weightlessness, Tsiolkovsky also proposed to rotate the spacecraft, creating artificial gravity. Perhaps it will be possible to develop a set of exercises and simulators that will remove the problem of bone and muscle loss. Some experts are hoping for a pharmacological solution: to find cures for the diseases of weightlessness.

If we talk about cosmic radiation, then English physicists from the laboratory named after Rutherford and Appleton believe that it will be possible to create a protective magnetosphere with a diameter of several hundred meters on a Martian ship with the help of a relatively small electromagnet. And you still need thick heavy anti-radiation screens, and radioprotective medicines.