Obstacles on the road to conquer the red planet

Will people set foot on Mars in 2020, 2050 or never? Predicting the timing is getting harder and harder. Strong radiation, bone loss in weightless environments, deadly dust storms and abnormal psychological states are just a few minor issues in that conquest.

In the late 1990s, planetary geologist John Marshall began studying costume materials for astronauts wearing future Mars adventures. He experimented by putting those materials into a wind tunnel and spraying a mixture of red clay that was similar to dust on the red planet. As a result, the dust sticks to the surface of the material, cannot be cleaned. Thus, if astronauts wear costumes made from these materials when on duty, they will face a lot of potential dangers. Mars dust clinging to clothing will follow astronauts into the cosmic cavity, corrode pressure belts, crush computer drives, shorten electronic circuits and possibly even cause the The crew member is sick.

That is just the simplest example to prove the human passivity in the conquest of the " neighbor " of the earth. James Garvin, head of NASA's Mars exploration program, admits that the biggest difficulty is that they never know for sure what is happening on the planet.

Thirty years ago, the success of the program to put people on the moon made us think that conquering the planets of the solar system is not too difficult. At that time, space engineers hoped the plan to make a manned flight to Mars would be feasible in 1981. However, after more than 20 years, the most valuable thing NASA received was any any rush only brings a disastrous failure. For example, at the time of the 1970s, engineers would certainly choose aluminum as a material to make a spacecraft shell to prevent harmful radiation. But recent studies show that aluminum atoms can be destroyed by cosmic rays and thus the invisible invisible aluminum shield poses a danger to the crew.

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The neighbor of the Earth

Time to make a trip to Mars is also a factor causing many obstacles. If it only takes about a week to perform a task on the moon, then the time of an " God of War " expedition can last up to 3 years. The length of time in such a long space forced scientists to find measures to protect the physical and mental health of the crew, develop devices suitable for Mars and even conditions. replacement parts and repair in case of failure. At the same time they as well as ensuring enough food, water and other necessities because supplies from the earth are impossible.

Although the process of conquering Mars did not keep up with the original expectations of scientists, but not so that the race to conquer this planet was less drastic. Some recent scientific discoveries have opened up many prospects. The data recorded by the spectrophotometer outside Mars shows that there may be water at the surface of Mars, but water is synonymous with the existence of life or at least are traces of life too the past. Meanwhile, geologists want to find out how Mars has become so dry, and whether the planet will reveal clues about the future of the earth. An expedition will be an opportunity to verify human viability in conditions beyond our green Earth.

After the disaster of the Columbia ship in February, NASA's 2020 plan only ended up on Mars orbiting ships along with exploration robots and some sample devices. But the budget that NASA proposed for space research in 2004 was $ 4 billion, up 532 million from 2003 and part of that balance will go to experimental programs to find solutions for those problems related to Mars expeditions.

Vehicle launch

In 1969, Apollo 11 was launched to the moon with a giant Saturn V rocket. But with the need to conquer Mars today, this type of missile cannot be met. To cross the distance 200 times from the earth to the moon, the spacecraft's fuel storage chamber will be so large that it cannot create a powerful enough vehicle to launch a spacecraft out of Earth's orbit.

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Bekuo spacecraft

NASA has proposed a $ 3 billion investment over the next five years to implement the Prometheus project with the aim of finding new sources of energy and building propulsion systems that meet the requirements of Mars exploration. First of all, this project will launch two unmanned spacecraft: a radioisotope-powered spacecraft that will conduct a Mars expedition in 2009, and a nuclear-powered ship will was launched on Jupiter in 2011. NASA also developed a system called Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMIR) to mount a test on a spacecraft called Bekuö. According to the design, Bekuo will use hydrogen energy to take the crew to Mars within 90 days, reducing the trip by one-half to half the current technology can meet.

Regardless of the type of engine selected, it is certain that the spacecraft on the future Mars will be installed in space, because spacecraft launches are not much more fuel-efficient than they are. with the launch from the ground. The ISS International Station is under construction, showing that the installation of spacecraft in outer space is feasible, but for the installation, NASA will need a shuttle to transport components to the ISS effectively. , safe and less expensive.

Once Mars is up, astronauts need an energy supply to maintain life and research activities. And so if solar cells are not the most effective solution, then NASA may have to turn to nuclear power.

According to the data that Mars Odyssey recorded when flying in Mars orbit from 1999 to 2001, the level of radiation on the red planet is about 20-25 millirads / day, which is twice as much as the allowance for public working in nuclear plants in the US .

Moreover, the level of radiation will be much greater during the flight from Earth to Mars and vice versa. Cosmic radiation - the energy and the main elements emitted from the sun - can adversely affect even break down the DNA sequence in cells, activate cell changes that in the long run will cause leukemia demand and many other cancers. Although the human body has mechanisms to regulate abnormalities of DNA, but with a large amount of radiation as the environment on Mars, the speed of genetic damage will exceed the body's natural repair speed.

Scientists are also very interested in the widespread presence of cosmic high-energy cosmic rays. These rays can spread radioactivity large enough to cause damage to the central nervous system, such as impairing astronauts' mobility and awareness. A study conducted by NASA two years ago also showed that astronauts in outer space for a long time will be at increased risk of cataracts, a consequence of exposure to radiation. Because of the dangers that threaten the health of astronauts, NASA only allows the maximum time of continuous space of 250 days, just as long as the minimum time to fly from Earth to Fire and vice versa.

Health

During long trips in space, the astronauts' bones are diluted at a rate of 1-2% per month. It is not known exactly whether the weightless environment will slow this process, but in the worst case, astronauts when performing a mission on Mars within 3 years will losing half of bone mass, which means that the bones become brittle, brittle and slow to recover when injured.

There are also signs that the body's immunity is significantly reduced in space flights. Studies on earth show that cellular immunity decreased by nearly 50% after each flight. But these are just the results of research on the earth so scientists have not been able to know exactly how the immune system will react when the body is in space for a long time. When the immune system is weakened, only a normal illness can have serious consequences and potential illnesses in the body such as chickenpox or shingles will work again. To soon detect and prevent the source of disease, scientists propose tiny devices to monitor cells. When abnormal signs are detected, these devices will give a warning to astronauts to take medicine promptly.

Psychology of the crew

Confined in a confined space for so many years in a place far away from the earth that it took 20 minutes to establish communications, the feeling of loneliness would make astronauts irritable and fall into mental collapse state. Because it is impossible to create in the harsh psychological testing environment like Mars, scientists cannot accurately predict the astronaut's tolerance. NASA is studying whether it is possible to limit the potential for potential conflicts between crew members, by choosing people with suitable personalities. NASA also hopes to design a surveillance computer that can detect stress levels as well as abnormal mental signs through facial changes, the intensity of each individual's voice, from there. There are appropriate soothing measures.

Environment on Mars

Different from its name, the red planet is very cold. In 1997, the Pathfinder probe measured temperature in the landing zone ranging from minus 13 degrees Celsius to minus 93 degrees Celsius within 24 hours. Mars is not only cold but also has many dust storms with the ability to generate electrostatic currents of up to 8 kV, strong enough to damage a computer and blow up fuses.

Picture 3 of Obstacles on the road to conquer the red planet The atmosphere is full of carbon dioxide, along with the absence of water, making Mars a lifeless place. Meanwhile, it is also difficult to carry water and air reserves on this planet, so it is likely that astronauts will carry hydrogen-containing devices to convert atmospheric carbon dioxide into methane and country. Next, the water will be electrolyzed to split oxygen and hydrogen. Oxygen is used for breathing and hydrogen continues to cycle for the cycle.

Although NASA is focusing on developing technologies that assist the journey to Mars, many risks are still beyond the predictability of humans. Experts assess the risk of the Mars expedition will be 25%, which means that a crew of 4 will not return. It is also the risk ratio that NASA predicted for Apollo generation when performing moon research tasks. However, a journey to Mars will be longer and more complicated than going to earth satellites. So the last and most important thing is whether NASA would dare to take the risk to fulfill the aspiration to conquer distant red planets.

Initiated more than 20 years ago, NASA's Mars research program is only at putting unmanned probes on the red planet. So how long do human beings have to wait?

Robert Zubrin, President of the Mars Association: " If NASA continued to maintain the Apollo program, now the first babies born on Mars may have already graduated from high school. "

Buzz Aldrin, a member of Apollo 11 crew: " From the Wright brothers' first plane until the man set foot on the moon, we lost 66 years. The conquest of the moon to conquer Mars will also lose that time ".

John Charles, NASA senior scientist: " Before the Columbia disaster, I thought we would go to Mars in the next 20 years. But now I can't be as optimistic as ever. "

Roger Launius, professor of space history at the National Aerospace Museum, Washington, USA: "We (the Americans) conquer the moon for many political reasons, the most important is the race. with the Russians in the Cold War, today it is hard to find a political motive strong enough to make us speed up the conquest of Mars . "

Update 17 December 2018