Fed up with life on Earth?
– make your way to the Mars!
by Ralph Kratzer
Recently my girlfriend told me about a talk show that she had followed on television. That discussion involved a man who had applied for a manned space mission to Mars, which rules out a return to Earth! What I thought at first to be a joke, is deadly serious. There is an organization called “Mars One” where one can actually apply for a one way ticket to the “Red Planet”. So if you are tired of life on Earth, make your way to the Mars!
About the “Red Planet”
The fourth planet from the sun, Mars is one of our closest neighbours yet it remains a mystery. There is strong evidence that water once flowed on the planet, but what happened to make it disappear? Is there life there? So many questions, and our quest to learn more about the red planet is just beginning. As NASA’s Mars rover continues to feed our curiosity about the red planet, we can admire it from afar.
But not any longer from afar due to the high flying plans of Mars One!
About Mars One
Mars One is a not-for-profit foundation that will establish a permanent human settlement on Mars in 2023. Human settlement on Mars is possible today with existing technologies. Mars One mission plans integrating components that are well tested and readily available from industry leaders worldwide. The first footprint on Mars and lives of the crew thereon will captivate and inspire generations; it is this public interest that will help finance this human mission to Mars.
The Mars One mission plan consists of cargo missions and unmanned preparation of a habitable settlement, followed by human landings. In the coming years, a demonstration mission, communication satellites, two rovers and several cargo missions will be sent to Mars. These missions will set up the outpost where the human crew will live and work.
The mission design takes into account the expansion of the human colony where a new crew arrive every two years.
Mars One will select and train the human crew for permanent settlement. The search for Astronauts began in April 2013. More than 78,000 registered for the selection programme within two weeks of its launch.
Stichting Mars One is a Dutch non-for-profit foundation. It is the mother company of Interplanetary Media Group, a for-profit company, which enables the foundation to secure funds from its investors.
History
In 2011, the founding members of the Mars One team came together to develop a strategic plan for taking humanity to Mars. That first year yielded the completion of a feasibility study after calling upon experts from space agencies and private aerospace corporations around the world. Written letters of interest in support of the Mars One plan were received. In this first-stage analysis, Mars One incorporated technical, financial, social-psychological and ethical components into its foundation plan.
After securing the first investments and commissioning the first conceptual design study in 2012, Mars One was ready to launch its Astronaut Selection Program. It was launched at press conferences in New York and Shanghai in April 2013.
