Touchdown on the Martian surface for America's Phoenix Lander.

Novosti, Russia

Another Visit to Mars; 'It's the Americans Again'

"Why is it American craft which are doggedly gnawing at the surface of this distant planet, having outlived their projected life-spans many times over? What prevents us, who have developed so many ambitious plans, from building and sending unmanned missions to Mars?"

By Andrei Kislyakov

Translated By Igor Medvedev

May 26, 2008

Russia - Novosti - Original Article (Russian)

MOSCOW: It seems that the Americans take the Red Planet quite seriously. On May 26, NASA's Phoenix Lander touched down in the vicinity of the planet's North Pole.

The first photographs have already been sent back to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California report, where the probe's "minders" are based. The probe is in excellent health and NASA is exhilarated. A safe landing on Martian soil is already a success. After all, of 15 attempts, this is only the sixth successful landing.

Why do the Americans need so many robotic missions to Mars? NASA is most likely hoping to find, first of all, micro-organisms; and failing that, to confirm that in the distant past, large amounts of water existed on the planet. In such a case, the hypothesis that there once was life on Mars would gain renewed validation. That is what makes this mission unique.

That there was water and related natural activity on the surface of Mars has already been confirmed by NASA'a Mars long-timers, space probes Spirit and Opportunity, which are still running after four years.

Since then, the two tireless rovers have been crawling over the planet providing the world's scientific investigators outstanding data. By the way, JPL employees themselves can hardly believe the success of these devices, which were designed for only three months of active existence! But the highest quality materials and software have enabled the Mars rovers not only to resist the harsh conditions on the Marian surface, but also to settle on optimal methods of operating.

In this regard, people might wonder, how is America's main partner - and rival in space - faring?

Of the eleven attempts by the USSR and new Russia to organize unmanned missions to Mars, none has been followed through to the end: the probes either failed to reach Mars or stopped work immediately after landing.

In 2004, the issue of a Mars Mission arose again in Russia, after statements by President Bush that the U.S. should return to the Moon and then carry out manned-missions to Mars. Since then, argument about whether costly and controversial attempts to land on Mars would be worthwhile has raged among Russian scientists.

It's worth noting that Roscosmos [Russia's space agency ] has no clearly articulated Martian program. And there's a good reason for that. Today, no large-scale Martian research is included in Russia's 2006-2015 Federal Space Program budget.

At the same time, the leadership of Roscosmos has repeatedly states that manned missions to Mars will be required after about 2030-2035. Next year will see the start of the much-touted Mars-500 project, which provides for a group of volunteers to spend 520 days isolated in a special module to simulate the conditions of prolonged space flight. The Russian Medical-Biological Research Institute will complete experiments at the end of this month to assess the capacity of the human body to spend prolonged periods with low oxygen content in a confined space.

In addition, according to numerous statements made by Russian space officials, a detailed plan for a manned expedition to Mars has long been developed. Specifically, the head of the RKK Energia, Vitaly Lopota, has been discussing the Martian project developed by his corporation.

"In the complex, there is an interplanetary vehicle, an energy-producing tug and an airstrip. This complex for interplanetary research should be assembled and tested in near-Earth orbit by a reusable vehicle, will have a mass of up to 500 tons and a life-span of 15 years. The number of crewmembers will be four to six people. The duration of the expedition to the Red Planet would be about 900 days, including a one-month stay after landing for a surface crew of two to three people," Lopota told Rossiyskaya Gazeta in an interview in early February.  

Posted by WORLDMEETS.US

That's all well and good. But it should be noted that even the Americans have no idea where to begin in terms of assembling a manned mission to Mars. Indeed, I have yet to hear that they have any coherent plan for such an expedition.

But why is it American craft which are doggedly gnawing at the surface of this distant planet, having outlived their projected life-spans many times over? What prevents us, who have developed so many ambitious plans, from building and sending unmanned missions to Mars? Money - or more precisely, the lack of it? Not at all.

I must say that so far, the two phenomenal U.S. Mars rovers have cost $1.5 billion. A healthy but affordable amount considering Russia's space budget. That's to say nothing of the U.S. Phoenix program, which is estimated at $420 million.

In my opinion, a simple but real unmanned mission to Mars is far better than illusory plans for future flights.

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[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US May 28, 3:03pm]