|
Back To the Moon, On To Mars
James Burk
January 10th: [Updated] The Bush Administration will announce on Wednesday a new vision for
human space exploration
meant to galvanize NASA, and finally bring the U.S. out of low earth orbit for the first
time since the last Apollo mission in 1972.
The details of the announcement are now filtering out. Bush will call for the construction of a permanent Moon base by 2013, in part to test technologies & methods for a mission sending Humans to Mars around 2020. New hardware
will begin to be developed immediately for both goals.
Goodbye Shuttles, Hello CEV
The main focus of the International Space Station will shift to studies related to the new human exploration initiative, and American involvement will slowly be
phased out. The three remaining Space Shuttles will be retired after ISS construction is complete. The US will rely exclusively on Soyuz, Progress, & Ariane flights for crew transfer & resupply to ISS.
An upgraded Orbital Space Plane, now titled the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), will take the shape of a capsule, and become the central component of future Moon/Mars exploration hardware. The first test flights of the CEV may occur as soon as 2007.
The CEV will initially be launched aboard a man-rated version of one of the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicles, the Boeing Delta 4 or Lockheed Martin Atlas 5. Yet neither of those choices would allow for a single direct launch to the Moon. Further heavy-lift systems may be developed to assist with the launching of materials to the Moon & Mars, or several individual launches would be required for a single manned attempt at the Moon.
Project Prometheus, NASA's relatively new program to develop nuclear propulsion for interplanetary missions, will be folded in the new efforts.
NASA will receive a
down payment of $800 million for fiscal 2005, and Bush will seek a 5% increase
in NASA's budget for upcoming years. NASA will be directed to shift most of its non-exploration projects (such as climate monitoring and aerospace research) to other government agencies to free up additional funds for the new initiative. NASA will also be directed to fold in any robotic exploration programs to the new efforts, ending the age-old debate on whether to fund human vs. robotic exploration.
Public Reaction
The reaction so far from Congress and the public has been mostly positive, but mixed. While many are welcoming the initiative as a long-awaited step in the right direction for human spaceflight, others are more cautious of the news.
The Mars Society's Dr. Robert Zubrin fears that the initial focus on the Moon may draw resources away from future plans for Mars, and considers the construction of a permanent Moon base somewhat of a detour from what some consider a long-term goal for human exploration of space, the eventual settlement of Mars.
Related Articles
Bush to Announce Missions to Mars, Moon
Officials Confirm Details of Bush's Plan for Sending Humans Back to the Moon, on to Mars
UPI Exclusive: Space plan to push robots
|
|
|