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https://theconversation.com/a-decade-after-the-release-of-the-martian-and-a-decade-out-from-the-world-it-envisions-a-planetary-scientist-checks-in-on-real-life-mars-exploration-255752>
"Andy Weir’s bestselling story “The Martian” predicts that by 2035 NASA will
have landed humans on Mars three times, perfected return-to-Earth flight
systems and collaborated with the China National Space Administration. We are
now 10 years past the Hollywood adaptation’s 2015 release and 10 years shy of
its fictional timeline. At this midpoint, Mars exploration looks a bit
different than how it was portrayed in “The Martian,” with both more
discoveries and more controversy.
As a planetary geologist who works with NASA missions to study Mars, I follow
exploration science and policy closely. In 2010, the U.S. National Space Policy
set goals for human missions to Mars in the 2030s. But in 2017, the White House
Space Policy Directive 1 shifted NASA’s focus toward returning first to the
Moon under what would become the Artemis program.
Although concepts for crewed missions to Mars have gained popularity, NASA’s
actual plans for landing humans on Mars remain fragile. Notably, over the last
10 years, it has been robotic, rather than crewed, missions that have propelled
discovery and the human imagination forward."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
