Bemannter Marsflug geplant

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/science/20051230TDY01003.htm

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Manned U.S. mission to Mars by 2030 eyed

Kyoichi Sasazawa Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration plans to send
six astronauts on a 500-day mission to Mars, according to its final
draft report on the Mars exploration program.

U.S. President George W. Bush promoted a new vision for NASA's space
exploration in a speech he gave in January 2004. NASA is aiming to
realize the mission before 2030.

The human mission to Mars is planned to take 2-1/2 years for the
round-trip and will comprise three sets of vehicles.

According to the NASA report, the first stage of the two-part planned
journey will be to launch two unmanned transport rockets carrying
habitation modules and other equipment two years before the six-member
crew's departure. The two rockets will enter Mars orbit after an
eight-month journey. This will be followed by the launch of a transport spaceship
carrying the six crew. members for a manned Mars landing.

Astronauts will first board a Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) that will
then dock with a Mars Transfer Vehicle (MTV) in low Earth orbit.
The MTV will enter Mars' orbit after a six-month journey.

The astronauts will carry out tests to determine whether it is
possible to land on the surface of Mars.

On the surface, the crew will first conduct a short test to determine
whether it is possible to stay for an extended period. When this test
is completed, and the astronauts are acclimatized to the environment,
they will transfer to a long-stay habitat module where they will
live for about 500 days.

The 2-1/2-year journey has been planned to take into account the
optimum time for traveling between the two planets based on their
relative positions. This has minimized the flight time.

The project has also been designed to minimize the exposure of the
crew to deep-space radiation and the zero-gravity environment.

When the crew members return they will travel in the CEV.

To minimize weight, methane will be used as a fuel for the CEV's
takeoff from Mars' surface. Methane can be used to create a chemical
reaction with carbon dioxide, which makes up 95 percent of the
planet's atmosphere. Testing will begin on a methane-fuel engine in 2018.

NASA plans to launch a CEV and send it to the International
Space Station in 2011, after the space shuttles retire in 2010.
(Dec. 30, 2005)
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