To protect other worlds from earthly contamination, an organisation called the committee on space research (Cospar) draws up the rules to prevent missions from Earth contaminating untouched environments of other worlds.
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Previous studies have suggested that lunar soil and water ice in certain craters of the moon may be mined and converted to fuel. Researchers said by this way it could fuel up and streamline cargo by 68%. Then a fuel-producing facility on the moon would launch tankers of fuel into space, placing them into gravitational orbit to be picked up by the Mars crew.
The study found out that the optimal way to launch a mission to the Mars is from Earth. “The idea of taking a detour into the lunar system…it’s very unintuitive”. It will need to develop advanced propulsion and life support systems before Chinese boots hit the surfaces of the moon and Mars.
The idea is that a crewed mission to Mars would greatly save on fuel and launch costs if it first made an interplanetary pit stop at a space-based depot to pick up its needed fuel.
During the in-situ resource utilization approach, materials ordinarily carried into space from Earth would be replaced by those produced in space, MIT explained.
“There’s a pretty high degree of confidence that these resources are available”, de Weck added. “Nearly nobody has looked at that question”, he pointed out. On the basis of their calculations, they discovered the optimal route to Mars, to minimize the mass to be launched from Earth.
The findings could mean that a network of “stops” before Mars is the best way to reach the Red Planet.
“We adapted the model for the more complex scenario of long-term missions in space – taking into account constraints specific to space travel”, said Takuto Ishimatsu, now a post-doc at MIT. This ice can be processed into hydrogen and oxygen molecules – the chief components of rocket fuel, which could then be used to fill up the tanks of voyaging spaceships. Throughout phase two, NASA wants to see astronauts, space stations, and rockets reducing their reliance on Earth, although a quick trip back home will still be possible if necessary.
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“NASA’s strategy connects near-term activities and capability development to the journey to Mars and a future with a sustainable human presence in deep space”, said William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations at NASA headquarters. “However, equally important, I believe that we need to “pave a road” in space so that we can travel between planetary bodies in an affordable way”.
