In this NASA illustration a Space Exploration Vehicle with astronauts roll across a planetary surface. On the right another version of the SEV hovers close to the surface of an asteroid. Image Credit/NASA illustration
A collaboration among 12 national space agencies, including NASA — and working under the wing of the International Space Exploration Coordination Group believes so.
They established a blue print, The Global Exploration Roadmap, which was made public earlier this week that suggests how it could be accomplished, through two pathways. One leads first to human missions to the moon, the other with a stop first at an asteroid.
President Obama in 2010 expressed his preference for the latter, with missions to an asteroid by 2025, followed by human journeys to the Martian neighborhood a decade later and eventually to the surface of the Red Planet. But other participants favor the moon first option, a destination explored by U.S. Apollo astronauts between 1969 and 1972.
The new road map allows the 12 nations who participated in the road map to continue their discussion until a pathway consensus emerges. In the meantime, the planning so far enables each country to consider what role it may like to play in robotic precursor missions and the eventual expansion of humans into the solar system.
In the early years, the road map leverages off the International Space Station, a U. S.led partnership that includes 15 space agencies, including those of Russia, Canada and Japan as well as the European Space Agency. The Global Exploration Roadmap folds in the additional space agencies of India, South Korea, Ukraine, as well as individual ESA member agencies –France, German, Italy and the United Kingdom.
“Agencies agree that human space exploration will be most successful as an international endeavor because there are many challenges to preparing for these missions and because of the significant social, intellectual, and economic benefits to people on Earth,” according to the opening wording of the 45-page road map. “This first version of the Global Exploration Roadmap represents a step in the international human space exploration road mapping activity that allows agencies to be better informed as they prepare to play a part in the global effort.”
The road maps participants plan a U. S.meeting earlier this year, and the publication of an updated roadmap a year from now. Participation in the planning is not binding for any of the agencies. Other national space agencies are welcome to participate as well.
The moon looms as one destination for astronauts before they voyage to Mars. Image Credit/NASA image
The planning envisions the U. S.in a leadership role. NASA’s Space Launch System, the heavy rocket architecture unveiled by the space agency in mid-September, as well as the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, a four-person capsule designed for deep space missions dovetails into the planning.
The development under way on the SLS and Orion/MPCV is expected to lead to initial test flights in 2017.
The “Asteroid Next” pathway calls for an initial piloted mission to a Deep Space Habitat in the 2025 to 2028 timeframe, followed by a pair of four person expeditions to yet-to-be-selected asteroids between 2028 and 2033. The “Moon Next” approach calls for five extended stay missions on the lunar surface for a crew of four between 2020 and 2030, followed by missions to a Deep Space Habitat at an Earth-moon Lagrange point and a Near Earth Asteroid during the following decade.
The lunar missions would focus initially on polar exploration. They would feature demonstrations of long distance rovers under development for the Mars expeditions, which could follow in the mid to late 2030’s.