DailyDirt: How Can We Get To Mars?

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

We already have a bunch of robots exploring various aspects of Mars, but even though we're not running out of things that bots can do in space, it would be nice to get astronauts walking on another planet someday. We could go back to the moon, but Mars is a more ambitious and noteworthy goal. Getting to Mars safely is a challenge because it'll take several weeks (at least) to get there, and no one has ever tested radiation shielding on such a long trip in open space. Still, it should be possible if we're committed to doing it. Here are just a few baby steps towards making a trip to Mars happen.

• Martha Lenio is trapped on an island with 5 other people in a simulated Mars mission. The Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation (HI-SEAS) project is funded by NASA, and these fake astronauts will spend 8 months isolated in a geodesic dome in Hawaii. [url]
• NASA is considering an induced therapeutic hypothermia for astronauts traveling to extremely distant locations. Science fiction often points to hibernation as a way to avoid the boredom of space travel, so it only makes sense to actually see if such a medical procedure is feasible. [url]
• Could personal sensors detect various problems like homesickness, depression and other psychological issues? NASA has had problems with disobedient astronauts in the past, but more monitoring during stressful situations on a cramped spacecraft might not be the answer. [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: hi-seas, induced therapeutic hypothermia, manned missions, mars, martha lenio, space, space exploration
Companies: nasa