Every person from time to time turns his gaze to the starry sky. Some people can find themselves a tiny reddish star - Mars. This amazing planet has long become very attractive for the best minds of mankind. So close and so far away Mars is a neighbor of the Earth, only Venus is located closer, the conditions on which discourage any desire to visit it in the near future.
In contact with
Mars is another matter... Of course, we all know that on this planet it will not be possible to comfortably rest on vacation, but there you can survive using the technologies already available to people. But is it that easy to do? What obstacles does humanity need to overcome to realize this ambitious dream? Fly or not fly?
How long to fly to Mars in time
An important factor in preparing a flight to Mars is the calculation of the time required to cover the distance between celestial bodies. Knowing the speed of a starship and the distance from Earth to Mars, it's easy to calculate the time it takes to complete an expedition, right? No not like this.
The fact is that each planet revolves in its orbit around the sun and the distance between them is constantly changing, the closest approach of the planets (in astronomy called opposition) when they are at a distance of "only" 55 million km from each other occurs only every two years. The rest of the time, the distance between celestial bodies is greater, reaching a maximum of 401 million km (when the planets are on opposite sides of the sun).
It is known from the physics course that it is impossible to overcome the speed of light (about 300 thousand km / s). This means, theoretically, humanity will someday be able to invent a way to travel in space, close to the light barrier. Light (radio waves) travels from Earth to Mars a little over 3 minutes if the planets are in opposition, and in 22.37 minutes in the case of the most distant celestial bodies.
A spacecraft moving at a speed close to the speed of light could cover these distances in a time close to the announced values \u200b\u200b(excluding the time for acceleration and deceleration with overloads that are not fatal to humans). In addition, according to Einstein's theory of relativity, for astronauts moving at such speeds, time slows down. So for travelers, such a mission would be an easy walk..
But in theory it is not yet known whether it is possible in principle to create such high-speed vehicles, so we will consider the situation based on what humanity has now and is capable of creating in the near future.
It is logical to choose the moment for space travel when the planets are as close as possible to each other. But here, too, not everything is simple. If our ship rushes to the point where Mars is at the moment of launch, then it will miss, since the planet will have time to move a considerable distance during the expedition. Hence, it is necessary to calculate the trajectory in advance in order to meet the planet at the calculated point. The forces of attraction should also be taken into account., capable of changing the trajectories of space bodies.
All these calculations have long been made, and space probes and stations have been successfully sent to Mars. Below are some of the successful spacecraft missions to Mars:
- Mariner 4. Launched in 1964, travel time - 228 days.
- Mariner 6. 1967 - 156 days.
- Mariner 7.1969 - 131 days.
- Mariner 9. 1971 - 156 days.
- Viking 1.176 - 335 days.
- Viking 2.176 - 365 days.
Why is the flight time so different, if the average speed of spaceships was approximately the same - a little over 20 thousand km / h, is it possible to fly to the "red" planet faster? It's all about the changing distance between celestial bodies and the need to build a flight trajectory taking into account the motion of the planets in their orbits. And it is also important not only distance between Mars and Earth, but also the supply of fuel necessary for maneuvers and a soft landing on the surface of the planet, because it is impossible to take any amount of fuel into the limited volume of the ship.
Currently, faster ships have also been created, for example, New Horizons, which is capable of moving at a speed of 58 thousand km / h and theoretically can reach Mars in 39 days during the period of the minimum distance between the planets and in 289 days - the maximum.
Planning of space missions with human participation is in full swing both in our country and abroad. And this task is much more difficult than sending an unmanned spacecraft with a one-way ticket. It is estimated that the minimum round trip time is approximately 500 days. Such a long time interval is due to the fact that in order to return to Earth, you will have to wait for a second confrontation.
After the launch of the spaceship our planet will begin to rapidly move forward, since the Earth's orbital speed is much higher. Therefore, after three months (and it takes more time to fly to Mars) the planets will disperse so much that return will become impossible until the next confrontation.
It is estimated that for a successful mission within one cycle, the minimum ship speed should be 18 km / s (64800 km / h), which is not yet achievable. A Saturn V rocket seemed to be in the position of a person, almost reaching this indicator (capable of accelerating to 64,500 km / h), but it is unclear whether this was a hoax or the technology of its production was lost.
However, technical progress does not stand still, new engines are being developed that work on other physical principles and sooner or later humanity will have space transport with the necessary characteristics, but that a mission to Mars involving person was successful, there are still many problems to be solved.
As you can see, the conditions on the planet are harsh, but this is the only known celestial body where a person can survive using certain protective equipment, because this is not plus 460 ° C, as on Venus.
What tasks need to be solved for a manned flight to Mars
Will the psyche cope
In 2007–2011 in an experiment was carried out to simulate a flight to Mars. A group of people had to be in a confined space for 520 days. Although under the terms of the experiment, any participant could withdraw from the study and leave the room at any time, mental disorders were found in some of the volunteers. What will happen in real flight?
Does the body
Humanity has the experience of being in zero gravity for six months, but even taking into account constant physical exertion, the adaptation process after returning to Earth is very difficult and long, because muscles and bones have time to atrophy without the action of gravity. Of course, every earthling would feel like a superman in the conditions of the gravity of Mars (1/3 of the earth), where a person weighing 100 kg will weigh only 39 kg. But we still have to fly to Mars, as we found out it will take 6-7 months in a tight, confined space, devoid of any amenities. And having returned back to Earth, to face all the "charms" of reverse adaptation.
Radiation
Perhaps the biggest problem on the path of man to other planets. And during the flight and on Mars itself, devoid of a magnetic field, a person will be exposed to cosmic radiation. Will the protective sheathing be able to cope with it? spacecraft, is it possible to protect yourself from radiation in modern spacesuits?
Man was formed on Earth, no one knows what awaits him in the event of a long stay in the conditions of Mars that are unusual for the organism. So far there are more questions than answers:
How many of these and other questions are still waiting for answers? But at all times, man has challenged nature, and now there are programs for preparing a flight to Mars, groups are being recruited to select volunteer enthusiasts who are ready to risk themselves for the sake of realizing the most cherished dream of mankind - travel to the stars.
In this interesting article, you will finally find out how long to fly to Mars from Earth - years, months or days? How many routes are there for flights and what distances they have, how much fuel is needed for a rocket and other interesting details about the time of flight to Mars.
How long to fly to Mars in time
According to the calculations of specialists working on the Mars One mission, the flight time will be about 210 days or 7-8 months.
Although no man has yet set foot on the Red Planet, a lot of unmanned spacecraft and "Mars rovers" have already been here. How long did they fly from Earth to Mars in time?
To better understand the distance, how long to fly to Mars from Earth in time, you need to learn something about previous missions to this planet:
- Mariner-4. The first to approach the "Red Planet" in 1964 was Mariner 4 ( Mariner-4, from the English. - Sailor) Is an automatic interplanetary station of the NASA program. The one way trip was 228 days... The device took pictures of Mars from a distance of 16 800 km to 12 000 km to its surface - scientists watched with bated breath. After all, it was originally assumed that Mars could have water in a liquid state, which means plants and other types of life. 21 images were transmitted by Mariner-4, and it was finally revealed that the "Red Planet" is more like the Moon than the Earth. And from living organisms here there can only be mosses and lichens.
- Mariner-6 (Mariner-6) hit the road in February 1969. It took him for the flight 155 days... The distance to the planet's surface this time was only 3429 km. In addition to filming, this apparatus was assigned an important task - to study the composition of the atmosphere and determine the temperature of the surface of Mars, based on the indicators of infrared radiation.
- Mariner-7 (Mariner 7) was a backup for Mariner 6, his journey to Mars lasted 128 days... He also studied the atmosphere and temperature of the planet.
- In 1971 he went to Mars Mariner 9 (Mariner-9). He reached the set point in 168 days... And he became the first satellite of the "Red Planet". With the help of this apparatus, a map of Mars was compiled. He worked until October 1972. until he ran out of supplies of compressed gas.
- Viking-1 (Viking 1). The first apparatus designed to land on the Red Planet was launched on June 19, 1976, reached for 304 days.
- Viking-2 (Viking 2) started on August 7, 1976 and reached Mars 333 days... It also consisted of an orbital station and a probe. The main task facing the devices of this space program was the following: the search for life. Also, about 16 thousand pictures of Mars were taken then. In the first color photographs, Mars confirmed its second name. The planet was a red desert, and even the sky appeared pink from the dust that the wind was blowing up.
- In 1996, he began to study the planet Mars Global Surveyor(Mars Global Surveyor), which flew to Mars in 308 days... It was also a NASA project and very successful. The device entered the circular polar orbit of Mars in 1999 and was engaged in mapping the planet's surface. He worked until 2001.
- Mars pathfinder (Mars Pathfinder), the US spacecraft, launched on December 4, 1996, landed on the planet on July 4, 1997, He studied the Martian rocks, surface temperature, wind and took pictures.
- Mars Express(Mars Express) - station of the European Space Agency - hit the road on December 25, 2003 and reached the goal for 201 days.
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter The (Martian reconnaissance) flew to Mars in August 2005, and in March 2006 entered its orbit. The road took 210 days... One of the goals facing the "Scout" was to find a place where people could land.
- Maven(Maven) - American interplanetary probe - was launched in November 2013 and flew to Mars 307 days... His main task was to study the atmosphere of the "Red Planet".
Watch a very entertaining video about flight attempts to Mars and current problems:
As can be seen from the given data, the travel time depends on the relative position of the celestial bodies.
The technical level of spacecraft has little effect on the speed of their movement, since no technological leap has taken place in the production of engines.
Unsuccessful flights
In addition to these fairly successful projects, there were many others that ended unsuccessfully. For example, technical problems regularly haunted " Mars"Built in the USSR. Either there was an accident of the launch vehicle, or the booster stage did not work, or the connection with the apparatus was lost. AND " Probe-2", Sent by the Soviet Union to Mars in 1964, did not reach the planet's region at all.
However, failures in this field pursued not only the USSR. In 1971, " Mariner 8"(Mariner-8) The US had an accident with a launch vehicle, in 1998 the Japanese failed to launch their spacecraft into Mars orbit, in 2011 there was an unsuccessful launch attempt from China.
All of this spoke about how difficult it is to plan and execute such a flight. And responsibility multiplies hundreds of times when people fly on board.
How long to fly to Mars from Earth
Of course, you want to immediately know the simple answer and it is (below), but in order to understand how long it takes to fly to Mars from Earth, you need to understand that there are different routes.
Celestial bodies are in constant motion, the distances between them can change.
- The greatest distance that the Earth and Mars can "scatter" 401 million km.
- On average, the Earth is on 225 million km from Mars.
- The shortest distance to Mars is 54.6 million km.
Flight routes to Mars
The orbits of the planets are circles, so you can “ cutting down»Path and fly in a straight line. However, when flying on a rocket, the sun's attraction must be taken into account. To save fuel, spacecraft will also move as far from the star as possible.
Video: How and how long to fly to Mars and in what way
The shortest distance to Mars is 54.6 million km. This is possible if the Earth is at the point aphelion(this is the name of the place of maximum distance from the Sun). And at the same time, the Red Planet will be as close as possible to the star - this is a point perihelion... So far, such a mutual arrangement of these celestial bodies has not yet been fixed.
In 2003, the Hubble telescope took a picture of Mars, the distance was only 55 million km.
To find out how long to fly to Mars in time, you need to take into account a number of factors:
- the speed of the planets;
- flight speed of the vehicle;
- distance from the sun;
- the need to adjust the course ( for example, to avoid collisions with other celestial bodies);
The flight path is calculated so that the spacecraft is not directed directly to the planet, but to a point that it will reach after a certain period of time. It should be borne in mind that it will be necessary to overcome the attraction of the Sun.
If you were offered to participate in the space program of colonization of Mars, would you agree to go there with an expedition?
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How long does light travel to Mars?
How long does the light fly to Mars? Let's count. The speed of light is 299 thousand km / sec. That is, at the moment when the distance between Mars and our planet is the smallest, the light will need only about:
- 3 minutesto cover the path from one planet to another,
- 13 minutes - if the distance is average,
- 22 minutes - if the maximum.
The fastest rocket in the history of space flight - Saturn vwhich accelerated to 64,000 km / h... Usually vehicles develop a speed of about 20,000 km / h.
The fastest automated space station today " New horizons”Launched in 2006 has a speed 16.26 km / s... She went to Pluto. If Mars were its target, UAN would reach the "Red Planet" for:
- 39 days - at a minimum distance;
- 162 days - with an average distance of Mars and Earth from each other;
- 289 days - at the maximum.
That is, at best, the trip would have lasted a little longer than a month.
Traveling at the speed of light is impossible under any circumstances. The speed of movement of any object is measured relative to any system. The special theory of relativity indicates that the movement of an object faster than light will look like the occurrence of an effect earlier than the cause. Such a paradox has never been observed.
Mars One Project
“Our traces will remain on the dusty paths of distant planets” - once this song was a real anthem of the USSR cosmonauts.
And, perhaps, similar prints on the paths of Mars will appear in the near future. A project has already been developed according to which earthlings will go to the "Red Planet". Mars One is privately funded and project manager Bass Lansdorp.
The project plan involves several stages:
- Crew selection and training. 24 volunteers will receive a course of psychological and technical training that will allow them to survive during the flight to Mars. It is passing at the moment.
- Launching artificial satellites of the Sun for organizing communications, sending necessary cargoes to the Red Planet (residential modules, life support systems, storage and cargo blocks, a rover). The implementation period is until 2024.
- The rover begins to prepare the base, launch the power supply and life support systems. This stage will end in 2025.
- A transit module, MarsLander spacecraft, engine stages and other parts are launched into Earth's orbit. The device is going to space. MarsLander is occupied by a crew of 4, which directly conducts the flight to Mars. This will happen in 2026.
- In 2027, the first crew should land on the Red Planet, occupy the base and begin to colonize the planet.
In 2013, the selection of applicants began. About 202 thousand people wished to become such. An amazing fact, given that it is known in advance that this is a one-way ticket: the road will be difficult, and life on Mars will also be full of hardships. 
Nevertheless, thousands of people are ready to become pioneers. First, 1058 people were selected, including 297 US citizens and 52 Russians. After the second round, 705 people remained in the team, and after the third - 660 people.
How many people fly to Mars according to Mars One calculations? Scientists are guided by the fact that the flight from Earth to Mars will take 7-8 months.
Regardless of how long to fly to Mars from Earth, a return along the same route is impossible. To date, there is no economically viable solution to deliver resources to the Red Planet for the construction of a launch pad and the required amount of fuel. The mission sponsors have no money for this, even in theory.
Famous businessman Elon Musk, who is the head of the SpaceX Corporation, in 2016 presented a program to colonize Mars. For its implementation, it is necessary to seriously reduce the cost of flights, build a new heavy rocket, create a spacecraft to transport 200 people and other innovations. All this requires serious capital and labor of hundreds of educated people.
At SpaceX in 2016, only 50 people worked on the entire project.
Elon Musk himself emphasizes that colonization cannot occur without terraforming the planet. Living conditions on Mars should be similar to those on Earth. This process will take several hundred years. And so far, technologies have not been invented with the help of which it is possible to change the force of gravity of the planet, the gas composition of the atmosphere, etc.
Skeptics treat this project, to put it mildly, with distrust. There is not much time left until 2025, huge financial investments are required, and the bill goes into the billions. And so far no one is ready to provide such an amount. You can recall the infamous project “ Constellation". It was commissioned to develop by NASA back in 2004 by the President of the United States George Bush... According to the project, the ship would deliver earthlings to the moon in 2010, the first lunar base would appear in 2024, and an expedition to Mars would start from there in 2037.
- But the state of the budget of the United States did not even cause a freeze, but a complete rejection of this program.
In addition, with the modern development of science, the risk for the crew of such a ship remains excessively great.
How much fuel is needed to fly to Mars
But let's say the flight did take place. It is already clear that volunteer astronauts on the "Red Planet" will not meet canals, palaces and golden-eyed Martians, as in the stories of Ray Bradery.
So how much fuel will a spacecraft need for a sufficiently long flight?
An interesting project for solving this issue Roberta Zubina... He sees the nuclear reactor as the main source of energy for the spacecraft of the future. The ship will carry 6 tons of hydrogen from the Earth. In the future, carbon dioxide will be used, the one that is part of the Martian atmosphere. With the help of the reactor, these components will be converted into methane and water. Water, with the help of electricity, will be decomposed into oxygen and hydrogen, and hydrogen will be used to produce methane. The resulting fuel - it is assumed that its amount will exceed 100 tons - will ensure the return of astronauts to Earth. All this will make the flight relatively short-term - about 18 months.
Fuel economy is very important.
Because you cannot launch a spacecraft along the shortest straight line: from Earth to Mars. The planets continuously move in their orbits, and if such a ship flew up to a given point, Mars would no longer be there. That is, the flight trajectory must be built "ahead of" the planet, which is the ultimate goal of the path. In addition, in order to return, the ship must carry a huge amount of fuel.
How long does a man fly to Mars and back
This task is facing the flight organizers. The faster the ship moves, the less fuel will be needed, the load on the crew will decrease - people will receive less radiation. And, of course, less oxygen, water and food will be required for astronauts.
For the flight to take place, the speed of the spacecraft must be at least 18 km / s.
At the same time, the return flight will take approximately 9 monthsand 17 months the ship will be in Mars orbit. After all, you need to fly back during " confrontation"When Mars and Earth come close. The waiting period may take up to 500 days.
Therefore, scientists call this figure: it will take at least 33 months for a round-trip flight.
Considering that now people have been working at orbital stations for about six months - and this is costly for their health - humanity must take a serious step forward in order to begin the exploration of Mars.
To reduce travel time, the ideas of nuclear reactors (7 months of flight), magneto-plasma rockets (5 months), as well as rockets based on antimatter - the most dense fuel ( only 45 days).
Mars is very similar in characteristics to Earth. Today there is a real opportunity to fly to this planet. A colonization project is already underway. If humanity begins to explore other worlds, then Mars will be the first of them.
Thus, the time is approaching when humans will actually go to Mars.
Will it be a "one-way road", which will significantly save money on the flight, or the astronauts will return to their home planet - time will tell.
In general, the minimum expedition time at the current level of development of science will be 7-8 months.
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How long to fly to Mars is known to everyone who is not even very strong in astronomy - for a long time. However, in the world of professional space flights, a lot depends on what is the mission of the flight, which device is flying: a manned or just a probe, and other factors.
Classic indicators of a flight to Mars:
- Fly to Mars for at least one hundred and fifteen days (using current technology). You can fly to Mars at the speed of light in at least 3 minutes (182 seconds)
- We'll have to overcome fifty-five million kilometers.
- With flight speed, it is still more difficult, because so far the most advanced spacecraft cannot fly faster than twenty thousand kilometers per hour.
However, everything is in order! Let us find out if the basic parameters indicated above are so plausible. We will find out how long to fly to Mars in time, distance, and at what speed you can fly to Mars. And what is being done to speed up the flight, make it more economical and safer.
Why is it taking so long?
First of all, it is necessary to clarify, Mars is located fifty-five million kilometers from our planetary home. So even if the Earth and this planet stop moving, then they will have to fly one hundred and fifteen days in a straight line, since the speed of the aircraft does not yet exceed twenty thousand kilometers per hour. In reality, both Mars and the Earth revolve around our star. Therefore, you cannot just take and launch the ship straight to the address of permanent registration.
The flight trajectory is thought out in such a way that the advance principle works. That is, in fact, the device flies to where Mars does not yet exist, but by the time the ship arrives it will be.
Fuel is considered another problem. Flights require an incredible amount of fuel. It would be nice to have a bottomless supply. But for now we have to be content with the current possibilities. If there were no obstacles in this, scientists would accelerate the ships to a tremendous speed until the middle of the way, and then the nozzles would unfold and slow down the ship. In theory, anything is possible. Only then will it be necessary to build an aircraft of incredible dimensions with an incredibly huge reservoir for fuel.
Ideas for speeding up flights to Mars
Honestly, the challenge for engineers is not acceleration, but fuel economy. Just don't think that this is about environmental health. It's all about real cost savings.
NASA today uses the Hohmann trajectory method, which consists of developing a method that leads to significant fuel savings. The method was developed by Mr. Homan back in 1925. It consists in the delivery of ships not directly to the red planet, but to the orbit of the Sun. At a certain time, this orbit will intersect with the Martian one, as a result of which the ship will immediately be tied to Mars.
It would seem that everything is so simple. But in fact, behind such manipulations, there is a very serious work on accurate calculations.
However, there is another option. Try the method of ballistic capture, when a spacecraft is launched in the orbit of Mars towards the planet. The red planet, when approaching by its own gravity, captures the ship, resulting in significant fuel savings. But not time, which takes much more than usual.
Promising fuels
The use of nuclear missiles
Nuclear missiles are certainly not a bad prospect. Their work can be carried out by heating a liquefied type of fuel, for example, hydrogen. After the thermal process, it will be necessary to eject this fuel from the nozzle at high speed. And this will create the necessary traction. In theory, this type of fuel could reduce flight times to seven Earth months.
Application of magnetism
Another option to accelerate is to use the capabilities of a variable-momentum magnetic plasma rocket. The movement of the apparatus will take place due to an electromagnetic device, where fuel is heated and ionized using a radio wave. This creates an ionized gas, or otherwise - a plasma, which subsequently accelerates the ships. And work on such a device is already underway. In the future, they are going to mount it on the ISS to maintain the station in orbit. And if everything goes smoothly with the testing of the device, it will help shorten the road to Mars in as little as five months.
Antimatter
The application of the properties of antimatter is probably the most extreme theory. To obtain antimatter, you need to use a particle accelerator. Since when particles of antimatter and matter collide, an unimaginably strong release of colossal energy occurs (according to Einstein), the speed of the ship will increase so much that it will be possible to reach the red planet in just forty-five days. And this will take about ten milligrams of antimatter. But the production of such a small amount will cost two hundred and fifty million dollars.
Today, scientists are working not only on these, but also on other very interesting and promising projects that will help to reclaim several months from time.
Plans of Russian scientists
Leading Russian scientist Academician Grigoriev claims that Mars can be reached in thirty-eight days. This will require the use of ion thrusters. However, it is believed that such a project will cost a lot of money. But the scientist boldly declared that this money is much more insignificant than the military budget of many countries.
And we have already been on Mars
The first to visit Mars was the Naval Mariner 4. It was launched in 1964, and it arrived on the red planet in 1965. During the flight, the device took twenty-one photographs. It took Mariner 4 two hundred and twenty-eight days to get to Mars.
Another ship - Mariner 6 - went to the planet in 1969 in February, and came to Mars in July. It will take him one hundred and fifty-six days.
Even faster was Mariner 7, which flew to the planet in one hundred and thirty-one days.
There was also Mariner 9, which successfully entered the Martian orbit in 1971. The spacecraft was in flight to the point of arrival for one hundred and sixty-seven days.
This is how the study of Mars goes. Each device sent to the planet spends an average of one hundred fifty to three hundred days on the road. The latter, Curiosity Lander (2012), reached the red planet in two hundred and fifty-three days.
One way flight! The most interesting is yet to come!
Mars One intends to send a group of astronauts to the Red Planet not just to fly in orbit, but to build the first colony-settlement on Martian earth. But for pioneers, this journey will be one-way. They will never see relatives, loved ones, friends, will not talk to them on the phone and will not even be able to use the Internet.
Despite the frightening future, more than two hundred thousand daredevils were still found who applied to participate in the mission. The project selected about a thousand fifty-eight applicants. Of these, the first four winners of the preparatory phase will go to the planet in 2025. Then, every two Earth years, other Marsonauts will join them.
But all these are just general words. And what actually awaits those who go into the unknown? And how will the opinion of each of us, who until now have wanted to be in their place, change when we learn about the upcoming trials?
Long and not at all fun flight
Mars One said that it will most likely take at least seven months, or even all eight, to fly to the red planet. Much will depend on the current location of the Earth relative to Mars. And all this long journey astronauts will have to put up with an extremely small, cramped space on the ship and the absence of all the amenities familiar to a modern person.
Terrible, but even ordinary bathing will become an unacceptable luxury. And like this, never having washed, eating only canned food, under the constant hum of fans, computer systems and the noise of life support systems, these true heroes will have to try not to go crazy and fly in full health to Mars.
And that's not all the trouble. There is such a terrible thing as a solar storm. And if on the way it happens, astronauts will have to imprison themselves in an even narrower space, which will protect them from the harmful Sun.
A real test for your nerves
Our mention of the probable mental instability that threatens every cosmonaut in flight is a very real threat. The Mars-500 project was implemented on the Russian platform. It was attended by six cosmonauts, of whom four showed the development of a depressive state in five hundred and twenty days in a confined space. I started having trouble sleeping. In one person, even due to chronic lack of sleep, attention and ability to concentrate suffered.
In fact, none of the astronauts has yet spent so much time in outer space. And even without communication and other conditions, as close as possible to the usual comfortable life, albeit in zero gravity. It is not allowed to stay on the ISS for more than six months already because bone and muscle tissue is being lost.
Recall that the marsonauts will have to spend more than two hundred days in flight - more than six months.
Martian passage of time
A day on Mars lasts only forty minutes longer than on Earth. On the scale of one month, maybe not a terrible difference. But in fact, for the inhabitants of the future colony, it will be tangible. Moreover, there are six hundred and eighty-seven days in a Martian year. It turns out that the newly minted Martians, over time, will be twice as young as their peers on Earth.
Feeling hopeless
Astronauts who have had a trip to the moon behind them said that as they moved away from their home planet, they felt as if inside their chest, a feeling of confusion and some frustration was growing in their heads. What will happen to those who go to Mars, to which it takes much longer to fly than to the Moon ?!
Martian gravity
The gravity awaiting astronauts on the Red Planet is what will make a return to Earth home impossible. The fact is that the Martian gravitational force is only a third of our planetary one. In other words, if a person's weight on Earth is one hundred kilograms, then under the conditions of a new colony he will drop to thirty-eight. As a result, muscles will atrophy, bones will weaken, and after a while a person will no longer be able to return to normal life on their home planet.
A similar situation on the ISS. But astronauts are saved by the short duration of their stay in space.
Reproduction on Mars
The organizers of a mission to Mars to create a colony there advise future settlers not to try to conceive children. There are several reasons. First of all, initially on the planet there will be no conditions for a normal family life. Then, nothing is known about how conception and development of the fetus can take place after so many months in flight, and even in new Martian conditions.
Sport is our everything!
In order to remain capable of at least some action, not to allow muscles to atrophy completely, and bones to adapt to simplified Martian conditions, you will have to stably maintain shape. There is one more thing to understand. In space, the heart and other organs begin to work somewhat differently. In any case, you will have to spend several hours playing sports. Even at the Space Station, astronauts have to train up to two hours a day.
Martian reality
The worst is yet to come. Training, questions of procreation, etc. described above is not the most frightening prospect. Diseases! No one can get medical attention on Mars. Maybe in the future, in the conditions of an already developed colony, it will be possible to provide settlers with decent care. But not at the beginning of the mission. You will have to avoid even the most minor injuries and ailments.
Martian contagion
Many people will decide that there is nothing to be infected with in space. Well, spaceships go a long way of disinfection. This is done in order to exclude the possibility of terrestrial bacteria getting into conditions, for example, of the Martian climate. But this fact should not make the future settlers of Mars very happy. If they catch some kind of infection on this planet, it is not a fact that even if the opportunity arises to return home, the Earth will accept such a person back. After all, no one will know how to treat an extraterrestrial disease. And the spread of the space epidemic must be prevented at the very beginning.
No more favorite foods
The project is to learn how to grow vegetables in a Martian climate. A very important initiative, as food taken from Earth will quickly run out. But you can only grow spinach, beans, lettuce. But animal food will have to be abandoned for a long time. Well, and about fried potatoes, cheeses and so on, you should completely forget.
Martian atmosphere
The Martian atmosphere is in an extremely rarefied state - on the order of a percent of the earth's. Ninety-six percent of the air on Mars is carbon dioxide, with trace amounts of oxygen. So the marsonauts will not be able to get out for some fresh air.
But the tests don't end there. Terrible sandstorms occur on the planet. They can last from several hours to several days and cover almost the entire planet. The sand that rises at this time can be very toxic to the human body. So, if you want to take a walk, you can do it in calm weather and only in spacesuits.
Silence and no internet
If you decide to send some information from Mars, then the delay will be from three to twenty two minutes. Therefore, telephone communications are ineffective. The text message will be sent with a delay of six minutes.
There will be no normal Internet either, except for a few sites loaded on Earth. And according to an insider, Mars One says that the settlers will have access to their favorite resources, but full access to the Web is not expected.
Radiation
Thanks to the Curiosity rover, it was possible to find out what level of radiation the astronauts on the Red Planet will be exposed to. The new house does not show hospitality here either. The rover transmitted data that showed six hundred and sixty-two (± 108) millisieverts - two-thirds of the limit of one thousand millisieverts. But there is no magnetic field on Mars that somehow resisted such a terrible impact. So every time a person walks on the surface of the planet, he will expose himself to terrible danger.
Don't you get it yet?
Once on Mars, you will die there!
Either die from diseases that cannot be cured. Or from careless walks under the influence of radiation. In the end, even if nothing special happens to you, you will still die away from those whom you loved all your life, whom you cherished.
Plus
Mars is the fourth planet in the distance from the Sun and the second in distance from the Earth (Venus is located closest to us). The average distance between Earth and Mars is about 225 million kilometers, but in fact it is constantly changing as the planets revolve around the Sun. In theory, their closest approach will occur when the Earth is at the point of its orbit most distant from the Sun (aphelion), and Mars is at the point of its orbit closest to the Sun (perihelion). In this position, the planets will be at a distance of 54.6 million kilometers from each other. The problem is that there have never been such cases. It was possible to get as close as possible to this value only in 2003, when the distance between Earth and Mars was reduced to 56 million kilometers.What to fly to Mars
The fastest spacecraft launched from Earth was New Horizons. In 2006, he went to Pluto at a speed of 58,000 km / h. How fast could he get to Mars? At the maximum approach of the planets, the probe could reach the Red Planet in 942 hours (39 days), and at the maximum distance - 6944 hours (289 days). The New Horizons probe could cover the average distance between Earth and Mars in 3888 hours (162 days).Timeline of the most important missions and travel times
"Mariner-4", USA, 1964.First successful flyby of the planet. Travel time to the Red Planet is 228 days.
"Mariner-9", USA, 1971.
The first artificial satellite for another planet. Travel time to Mars is 168 days.
"Viking-1", USA, 1975.
The first spacecraft to successfully land on the surface of Mars. Travel time to the Red Planet is 304 days.
"Mars Odysseus", USA, 2001.
This spacecraft has been operating in Mars orbit longer than any other. Travel time to the Red Planet is 200 days.
"Mars Express", USA, 2003
The orbital probe continues to operate and send images to Earth. Travel time to the Red Planet is 201 days.
Mars Science Laboratory, USA, 2011.
A mission in the course of which the Curiosity rover was successfully delivered to the Red Planet. Travel time to Mars is 254 days.
According to scientists, it was on Mars that there was once a large amount of water and a warm climate. Such conclusions led to an increase in interest in this planet and the emergence of attempts to explore it in more detail.
On this basis, various patrons-researchers, leading projects on the colonization of the planet, appeared, and thanks to modern technologies and the development of science, such undertakings became possible. Films appear based on research, and Internet users are increasingly asking the question of how long to fly to Mars. Let's talk about this in more detail.
The interest in space exploration on the part of scientists is quite understandable and understandable. But how does it form among ordinary people? It's even more simple here. Take cinema, for example. In 2015, the movie The Martian, based on the novel of the same name by Andrew Weir, was released.
The plot of the film is based on the fact that an expedition to explore the surface of the planet is forced to leave Mars due to a strong storm. One of the participants in the research flight is unconscious, and the team concludes that he died. As a result, the departure occurs without him, and the astronaut comes to his senses and remains alone with the unexplored planet.
Despite the fact that the film itself is just an adventure fiction and has little to do with reality, it is a feat of many romantics to think about the questions of how long to fly to Mars and whether life is possible on it. An astronaut who, by all means, must survive on an alien planet and wait for the return of the expedition (and according to the creators' intention, this takes almost four years) attracts the attention of the audience.
Despite the fact that there are many inaccuracies and inconsistencies in the film, the picture aroused the interest of the public and made people think not only about scientific progress, but also about the real possibility of colonizing the planet by earthly inhabitants.
The Martian is far from the only film that piques the interest of ordinary people. Almost everyone remembers one of the best roles of Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie "Total Recall", it has become almost a cult. Also, fans of this trend are probably familiar with the NBC mini-series "The Martian Chronicles" based on the novel by Ray Bradbury in 1980. Not so long ago sensational "John Carter" and his princess of Mars.
All these films form a certain perception and a desire to at least slightly open the veil of secrecy and find out what is there on Mars, is there a possibility to live there and how long to fly to it.
Elon Musk and his Tesla
The launch of the Tesla Roadster to Mars took place on February 6, 2018 at 23:45 Moscow time, and was launched into orbit by a Falcon-Heavy rocket from the US cosmodrome. Despite the fact that the real trajectory of the flight will pass by the planet, Elon Musk's idea was not abandoned and was brought to life.
The company of the American inventor developed super-heavy rockets designed to deliver large, heavy cargo into space. A cherry-colored Tesla car was chosen as the cargo, as Elon felt that loading the rocket for a test flight with standard concrete slabs for this case would be boring. Instead, a bright car with an astronaut dummy at the wheel flew into orbit.
The launch of the first Falcon Heavy rocket was postponed several times and finally took place in early February. As a result, photos of a convertible with an astronaut at the wheel appeared on the network. It did not work to bring the car to the intended course (it was supposed to go to the heliocentric orbit of the Sun, and from there to Mars), the speed with which the car was launched into space turned out to be too high, as a result, the trajectory of movement shifted. Despite the fact that no one in space will hear this, the on-board audio system of the car reproduces David Bowie's "Space Odyssey".
This is the first step of the main task of the inventor, and he positions the last one as the colonization of Mars. The scientist intends to develop a ballistic vehicle capable of delivering people to the Moon and Mars. According to the forecasts of the inventor, he will implement his plans by 2024.
How long to fly to Mars: real facts
It is quite difficult to indicate the exact distance from Earth to Mars. This is due to the fact that the planets constantly revolve around the Sun and the distance between them is constantly changing. On average, it will take 225 million kilometers to fly to the red planet. Moreover, the minimum distance between the two planets is 54.6 million kilometers. It is available only in a certain position of the planets, at this moment the Earth is at the most distant point of the orbit from the Sun, and Mars, on the contrary, is at the closest.
The only caveat is that this never happens. The minimum was recorded in 2003, when the two planets were at a distance of 56 million kilometers from each other.
So how long to fly to Mars? It depends on each specific situation. Let's consider the answer using specific examples of completed flights.
- The first flight took place in 1964. The American satellite "Mariner-4" went to Mars. The journey to the destination lasted 228 days.
- The next flight was undertaken in 1971 with the American satellite Mariner 9. He reached the Red Planet much faster, the journey time is 168 days.
- In 1975, the Viking-1 satellite was sent to Mars. This device is the first to successfully land on the planet's surface. However, the travel time is 304 days.
- In 2001, Mars Odysseus reached the planet in 200 days. He is still working in orbit around the planet.
- The fastest machine was launched in 2006. Its speed was 58 thousand kilometers per hour, but it was directed towards Pluto. If the planets earth and Mars were as close to each other as possible, then the flight of this satellite would last only 39 days. At the maximum distance - 289 days.
Thus, it will not be possible to accurately answer the question of how long to fly to Mars. The duration of the flight depends on the specific position of the planets.
When the first colonizers fly to Mars
People have been talking about colonizing the planet for a long time. Scientists suggest that the planet may be quite suitable for life and further settlement. But to confirm their guesses, researchers need to send the first settlers to the planet.
It is worth noting that today the One Mars project provides for a flight to the Red Planet in order to establish the first colony in the history of mankind. Despite the fact that the flight is only planned for one way (astronauts will never return to Earth and end their lives on a distant planet), more than 200 thousand people have applied. Among them, only 1058 were approved, which will be considered in the next stage. As a result, it is planned to send only 4 astronauts to Mars.
According to the plans of scientists, the shuttle with the first people will land on Mars in 2025. But you shouldn't think that everything will happen as in the beloved films about the Red Planet. Here are a few facts that can cool the ardor of people worried that they will not be able to take part in the first settlement of the planet.
- The flight time will be 7-8 months, and the settlers will have to spend this time not in the most cozy and comfortable conditions. The lack of amenities and the inability to wash alone is worth a lot.
- The flight will have a profound effect on the psyche of astronauts. Now the cosmonaut spends no more than 6 months in orbit.
- Martian time differs from Earth time, despite the fact that the day on Mars is only 40 minutes longer than Earth time, in total it will be very noticeable.
- After full adaptation to the gravity of the planet, a person will not be able to return to Earth. Even if the return was envisaged, the settlers could no longer withstand the Earth's gravity, which is three times stronger than the Martian one, their bones and muscles atrophied under low pressure conditions.
- Astronauts will have to constantly subject themselves to serious physical training to stay in shape. All systems of the human body work in space in a completely different way and they need regular support.
- In case of illness, no one will help the first settlers. Despite the fact that a set of medicines will be provided, this will not protect against possible infections with unknown ailments on an alien planet.
- Astronauts will have to constantly live in thin air.
- The Internet and mobile communications will become inaccessible to astronauts. Several sites will be loaded on the on-board computers, but, alas, it will not work to fully use the network.
It is not at all worth starting a conversation about radiation, sandstorms and, in general, the mass of unknown dangers to which the first Martian colonizers may be exposed. Most importantly, these people will never return to Earth. But despite such a prospect, there are many enthusiasts who are ready to personally find out how long to fly to Mars.