14 DAY TRIAL // One of the main ambitions NASA has is to land astronauts on Mars, but this is very difficult to do with current technologies. This is why the space agency is funding research on a new, nuclear fusion rocket, which could fly to our neighboring world and back in just a few months.
Through its Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program, NASA is supporting University of Washington investigators in this quest. Led by researcher John Slough, the team is working on developing a delivery system that would take astronauts to Mars in just 90 days.
With existing technologies, the shortest timeframe for a round trip to Mars is a little over 500 days. Measurements conducted with the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) instrument on the NASA Curiosity rover have shown that astronauts would be exposed to a lot of radiations over such a lengthy trip, which would put their lives in danger.
In addition to radiation issues, astronauts would also have to deal with medical problems related to long-term exposure to microgravity, such as muscle atrophy or bone loss. This is why the system developed by Slough and his team sounds so appealing to NASA, Space reports.
“Using existing rocket fuels, it's nearly impossible for humans to explore much beyond Earth. We are hoping to give us a much more powerful source of energy in space that could eventually lead to making interplanetary travel commonplace,” Slough said in early 2013.
Advanced electrical propulsion engines and rockets propelled by nuclear fusion/fission seem to be the most logical next step beyond the chemical fuels used today. Slough's design would use the same process found at the core of the Sun to propel a spacecraft to Mars and back in 213 days.
The fusion design the team is contemplating is based on known physics and a proven method. Already, experiments conducted in the lab have demonstrated that it is possible to attain nuclear fusion, as well as its main byproducts, neutrons.
Propulsion experts believe that a nuclear fusion-powered rocket would be the most cost-effective and efficient means of transporting a crew to Mars and back within acceptable time frames. However, the UW team stresses, some time will pass before a rocket prototype is ready to use.
NASA currently plans to put astronauts on the surface of Mars by the mid-2030s.