NASA “Sending people in the 2030s”… China also prepares for manned Mars exploration
US Perciviers landed last month… Increased likelihood of finding life traces
Traces of water · Oxygen in the atmosphere… Mars, the solar system most similar to Earth
50 exploration attempts since the former Soviet Union in 1960… Only 40% of landing successes
Estimated 480 years for’terraforming’, such as planting plants and constructing settlements
Science Journal Nature picked’Mars gets busy’ as the main topic this year. In fact, Mars is busy with probes from around the world as of the 2nd. The probes that left Earth last summer are flocking one after another. NASA’s exploration rover (mobile exploration robot) perseverence, which set foot on the surface of Mars on February 18, is an example of an ancient lake formed by a delta created by a river 3.5 billion years ago. Craters’ is looking for traces of life. It plans to bring Martian soil to Earth for the first time ever. On the 24th of last month, China’s first unmanned Mars probe, Tianyuan 1, successfully entered Mars’ atmospheric orbit. It lands on the’Utopia Plain’, which is considered the largest impact basin in the solar system around May to June.
1. Why did you rush to explore Mars?
Mars is known to be the planet most similar to Earth among the planets in the solar system. Not only is it relatively close, it is made of rocks like the Earth. Some atmospheres contain trace amounts of oxygen. Compared to planets in extreme environments such as Mercury and Venus, due to the milder environment, the most research has been conducted through ground probes since ancient times. After the existence of flowing water was confirmed, it has emerged as a key stage in human space exploration as it is considered as a place with the greatest potential for’terraforming’ (the work of making non-Earth planets an environment in which humans can survive).
Mankind’s pioneering on Mars was first realized through systemic competition during the Cold War. At that time, the US and the former Soviet Union, which were competing for the pride of their respective national system, launched a spacecraft in full swing. The first Mars probe in human history was launched by the former Soviet Union in 1960, and the first country to successfully observe the surface of Mars was the United States in 1965. Since then, the two countries have competitively launched probes. Sometimes, while landing on Mars orbit, conditions for living organisms such as water and nitrogen were identified one after another. As vast amounts of data on Mars’ geology, chemical structure, and atmosphere were transferred from the probe to Earth, interests of each country grew. More than 50 spacecrafts have been launched so far, making it another field of competition for supremacy.
2. Reasons for simultaneous launch
The road from Earth to Mars is not always open. Mars orbiting the Sun from the outside of the Earth is 687 days, twice the Earth’s orbit, and the moment the distance between the two gets closer, it returns once every 26 months. Between July 17th and August 5th of last year, this’Golden Time’ has arrived. During this period, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), China, and the United States sent spacecraft to the sky where the so-called’Launch Window’ was opened. The UAE probe’Amal’ (‘Hope’ in Arabic), which aimed to reach orbit, achieved its goal on the 9th of last month. After the successful surface landing on the 18th of the same month, US Percivirence sent a high-definition picture of Mars and a file of sound from Mars. China’s first unmanned probe, Tianyuan 1, attempts to land on the surface as early as May. This year, it has been a monumental year with goals from the United States, which has been regarded as a traditional space exploration powerhouse, with 9 successful landings on Mars so far, as well as the UAE, a small Arab country, and China, which is attempting to “roll in space”. In particular, attention is focused on whether Percivirence, which settled in the’example crater’, an ancient lake in which a delta was formed with sediments carried by rivers about 3.5 billion years ago, can find traces of life.
3. Cases of success and failure of the probe
To date, the United States, Russia (formerly Soviet Union), the European Space Agency (ESA), India, UAE and China have succeeded in putting the spacecraft into orbit on Mars. The United States is engaged in exploration through three orbiters (Odyssey, MRO, Maven), one lander (Insight), and two rovers (Curio City, Perciviarence). ESA is operating the Mars orbiter, the Mars Express, and has successfully entered the Mars orbiter, Exomas, in cooperation with Russia. India successfully launched the Mars orbiter Mangalian in 2014. In July, the UAE probe Amal and China’s Tianyuan 1 also entered Mars orbit. The only countries that have landed the probes on Mars are the United States and Russia. China is expected to be named as the third country by landing the Tianyuan 1 lander and rover on the surface of Mars in May. In particular, if China succeeds in this mission, China will write the first record of operating an orbiter, a lander, and a rover at the same time.
4. The reason it is called the 7 minutes of fear
Since the Soviet Union first launched the Mars probe Masnik 1 in 1960, mankind has attempted to explore Mars more than 50 times. There are only 20 cases of successful settlement. That means only 40% of the landings were successful. In particular, it is difficult and dangerous for the probe to enter, descend, and land on Mars’ atmosphere, so it is also called ‘7 minutes of horror’. The most recent failure to land on Mars is ESA’s 2016 ESA lander, Skiaparelli. Schiaparelli, sent by the ESA to explore Mars life, failed to overcome 7 minutes of terror and plunged to the surface of Mars and exploded. In June 2003, the British-made Mars lander Beagle 2 was launched on the Mars Express, the first Mars probe in Europe, but communication was cut off immediately after landing, and disappeared entirely in February 2004. NASA also sent a Mars climate probe and a Mars polar lander in a row in September and November 1999, but the Mars exploration failed as all contact was lost due to a mistake on the ground.
5. The ability and longevity of the rover
The rover, a mobile exploration robot, adapts to the extreme environments of space and conducts scientific investigations of soil, geological structures, atmosphere, and water on the surface of Mars. To date, the only country that has successfully landed on Mars and operated the rover is the United States. NASA is running Curiosity and Persistence, and in the past, they used Sojourner, Opportunity, and Spirit to conduct exploration activities. Sojourner transmitted vast amounts of information to Earth, including Mars’ geology, chemical composition, and atmosphere. Twins Rover Spirit and Opportunity found evidence that Mars had been humid in the past. Curiosity discovered traces of water flow and nitrogen under the surface of Mars. NASA’s rovers were active longer than expected. When creating Spirit and Opportunity, NASA designed a goal with a lifespan of 90 days and a travel distance of 1000 m. Spirit has been active for more than 5 years, and Opportunity has traveled 45 km for 15 years. Curiosity, which landed on Mars in August 2012, had an expected lifespan of two years, but is still active for nearly nine years.
6. Did life ever live on Mars?
Humans have explored the possibility of life on Mars since the first spacecraft, Vikings 1 and 2. To date, no clear evidence of life has been captured. There are traces of water flowing on Mars, and as a large amount of ice or lakes have been discovered underground, the possibility of life or existence is still high. Many scientists speculate that life is more likely to exist underground, especially in the presence of water and high concentrations of hydrogen, rather than above the barren surface. Persistence is equipped with RIMFAX, a ground-penetrating radar that can penetrate underground, so you can observe the condition of the underground in more detail. The likelihood of finding traces of life is so great. “We had evidence that Mars had an environment in which life could live, but this expedition will track whether life actually lived there,” said Ken Williford, NASA’s head of the experiment.
7. When will the manned Mars exploration be?
In 2018, NASA Director Michael Bolden said he would send people to Mars by the mid-2030s. Elon Musk, CEO of private space company SpaceX, has pledged to send people to Mars by 2024. China is also known to be preparing for a manned exploration to Mars. In 2013, Mars One, a venture company for the development of Mars in the Netherlands, recruited personnel to participate in the construction of the Mars colony in 2023.
Experts predicted that the manned exploration would take more time. The Mars environment must be verified through unmanned exploration, and humans can be dispatched only when the infrastructure to withstand the extreme environment of Mars is established. Mars has a weak magnetic field, so the atmosphere is wiped out by the solar wind, and there is a very small amount of oxygen. In addition, more than 50 times the Earth’s radiation is poured onto the surface in a small atmosphere, and if humans stay on Mars for three years, the lifetime amount of radiation allowed by NASA to astronauts would be exceeded.
8. Is’Theraforming’ Really Possible?
‘Terraforming’, which is a combination of Terra, which means’earth’ and Form, which means’make,’, is to change the environment of a new planet similar to that of the Earth so that people can live. For this, it is necessary to create an atmosphere on the planet, create water, and then raise the temperature to plant plants or spread artificial microorganisms. Mars is the most influential terraforming area, and renowned astronomer Carl Sagan and others also expected terraforming. According to NASA’s 2012 predictions, 90 years to raise Mars atmospheric pressure, 120 years to melt glaciers to obtain water, 150 years to raise planetary temperatures, 50 years to plant and spread vegetation, and 70 years to build a Martian settlement. Etc. It takes a total of 480 years. The cost is estimated to be about 3.900 trillion dollars (about 4325 trillion won). Besides Mars, Venus and Jupiter’s moons Europa, Saturn’s moons Titan, and Enceladus are also mentioned as terraforming candidates.
9. The progress of the Korean Mars exploration
Korea has not yet had a specific Mars exploration plan. The 3rd Basic Space Development Promotion Plan, which was most recently completed, regulates only the moon exploration, the first space exploration project in Korea. After launching the lunar orbiter in 2021, the lunar lander is expected to be launched by 2030 when the conditions for launching the lunar orbiter are satisfied. It plans to challenge the launch of the asteroid sample return ship in the future, but space exploration of other planets, including Mars, remains a future task that promises a more distant future.
10. The task for K-Space University is
Basically, space exploration is expensive and time consuming. It is necessary to establish consistent and continuous policies that can implement mid- to long-term projects and the will of the government to promote them. Experts advise that only when a challenging research environment and a culture of scientific policy-making, which can risk failure, are firmly established on the ground, a path to a further distant universe can be opened. Microscopically, deep space navigation and large-capacity thruster technology must be supported. Deep space navigation technology requires the accumulation of additional research results such as navigation software, precision attitude control, and deep space communication. In addition, a large-capacity thruster to reduce the speed when entering the track, and precision thrust technology for track adjustment are also required. Above all, it is no exaggeration to say that the success of a nuclear (nuclear-propelled) engine determines the success or failure of space exploration.
Reporters Roh Seong-yeol, Jeong Yoo-jeong, and Jang Seo-woo