Introduction:
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to take a step on the moon.
This exceptional moment for humanity, still remains very rare today, since only 12 men were able to realize it.
The last sortie to the Moon was made on December 14, 1972.
Since this space conquest by the Americans, astronomical costs have slowed politicians to renew these trips.
We were at a time when the technological and psychological warfare between the Americans and the Soviets was such that the two great nations were opposing a race for space domination, but once the goal was achieved, it was no longer true of interest to continue it.
Ariane 5, Falcon 9 are today unable to reproduce the feat of landing on the moon to return to earth thereafter.
Saturn V was already a technical feat in 1969 and is still today, the financial cost to achieve such a feat today would be much too important.
The moon is no longer a dream for man, we know enough about it not to return.
Man renews his space conquest by pushing these desires further, the next target to similarities with our dear Earth, it is his cousin Mars.
Why Mars?
Like the Moon in its day, Mars fascinates men.
Many scientists are wondering whether the planet Mars could ever be colonized.
The moon does not allow life and global overpopulation begins to worry, the planet Mars is a possible alternative.
In 1965 the American spacecraft Mariner 4 flew over our cousin.
We had the first images of Mars.
Other missions followed, looking for evidence of past life in March, and gathering a lot of information specific to the planet.
On August 06, 2012, the Curiosity rover began its exploration on the Martian ground, this rover much larger than the preceding ones, made it possible to obtain much more relevant information on the questions remained in suspense.
We will see in this article, work and research under development to achieve our goal.
This human mission to Mars could see the light of day in a few decades, but is it feasible and what are the problems now known?
Experiences and work in progress
The first known problem in our goal Mars is of course the distance.
On May 30, 2016, Mars was only 75.3 million kilometers from us, but can also be more than 400 million kilometers at certain times.
A precise calculation will make it possible to make the trip by playing on the two existing orbits, namely the cycle of the earth of 365 days and March of 687 days.
When the two planets are in opposition (they are on the same side of the sun and aligned with it), they can according to their curves, be closer to certain predictable dates (from 55 to more than 400 million kilometers).
For information current in 2018, Mars only squeezed 57.6 million kilometers.
There are several lines of research to find the best solution
1 / Argon gas propulsion studies could allow a 39-day flight over the shortest distance of 55 million kilometers.
The thrusters would come into operation only once the exit of the atmosphere reached.
2 / Another alternative would be to take advantage of solar energy to produce a sufficient push to reach Mars.
3 / The creation of lunar bases to build a shuttle in an environment devoid of terrestrial attraction is under study, but difficult to achieve. The astronomical cost of the operation slows down this ideal idea.
Many NASA-funded companies continue to search for the most economical and feasible way to make this trip.
The colonization of Mars and the distance
In the history of humanity, there have always been explorers and colonizers.
When we go into exploration, we have to think about the discovery of the unknown.
Men will risk their lives to discover a place that no one has hitherto been able to reach.
Unlike the explorers of our world who have discovered our planet through the centuries, the conquest of space requires a more scientific approach, because it exposes man to a much more hostile and unknown environment.
For example we know to this day that man has never lost the Earth with those eyes, even on the moon. If tomorrow a group found themselves on Mars, without any visual on the Earth, how could they react?
We can compare this feeling to man in the face of death, we can imagine it, say that we will apprehend this moment in this or that way. But at this tragic moment, how are we going to react?
This simple question is unanswered today.
Another unknown problem is man's ability to adapt to the environment of Mars.
For example, bottled divers know the drunkenness of the depths. There is a protocol to treat a person who experiences this phenomenon, to bring it to the surface safely.
Is there on Mars an identical or similar case where man undergoes a physiological reaction, and if so, what can we do?
There are countless questions that will remain unanswered if one day we finalize our project Mars, only the experience of the first men will provide answers.
How to live on Mars?
In the colonization of Mars also come the problems of self-sufficiency.
We must be able to live on the surface of Mars for a long time.
To survive, man has vital needs, which we find in the four fundamental pillars of survival
Man needs:
- to produce food
- to treat this waste
- to renew his air
- to recycle water
There is currently a project to live in a hostile environment and self-sufficiency, it is a closed loop that is used in Antarctic test, the project MELISSA (Micro-Ecological Life Support System Alternative).
Microbes degrade waste (excrement), create a compost that feeds plants, the latter absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen and food and also serve to recycle water.
Self-sufficiency is paramount on Mars, we must be able to live on the surface of this planet in a completely autonomous way
The problem of cosmic rays
Unlike the Earth, Mars is not protected by the magnetosphere.
Cosmic rays from the sun hit the Martian surface, which is a problem for humans.
These rays can damage DNA, cause cancer, and cause a set of physical problems on the human body.
Studies show that at a depth close to 8 to 9 meters we could get rid of these cosmic problems another solution could come from a bubble of life on the surface, recreating an atmosphere and filtering these famous rays.
Again, there is a lot of research on this, but none to date provides the satisfaction needed for a first trip.
The atmospheric pressure is too low
We find ourselves once again facing a difficult problem to solve.
The Martian atmospheric pressure being very weak, the possibility of life becomes impossible.
We often hear that Mars has had water that has been scientifically proven.
But today water would not even hold on the surface of the planet with this low pressure.
Terraforming
This process of putting a planet in the image of ours.
The man could live there as on Earth, but it would take more than 100,000 years to hope to achieve this feat.
The idea is to increase CO2 to create a greenhouse effect, recreating an ozone layer.
The process would require a significant amount of CO2, but would be hugely achievable scientists.
To do this it would be necessary to use the CO2 blocked in the ice caps by warming March.
Once again our dear scientists are thinking about this project which seems less far-fetched than it seems.
Future missions will be inhabited by more and more autonomous robots, who can prepare the planet Mars upon our arrival.
From day to day, we progress, pushing ever further the possibilities of knowledge.
Men and women are working in the shadows to make humans the space explorers of tomorrow.
I advise you if the subject interests you to watch TEDX videos that speak about the subject.
SOURCE PHOTO /
www.huffingtonpost.fr
www.futura-sciences.com
www.extremetech.com
www.esa.int
wwwvillemin.gerard.free.fr
http://fr.ign.com