A new mission to send humans to Mars could see astronauts stepping foot on the red planet within 24 years without the need for budget increases, according to new plans put forward by Nasa.

The new plans, proposed by scientists at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena California, will first land humans on the Red Planet's moon Phobos before visiting the Martian surface.

It ultimately aims to send four astronauts to live for a year on the surface of Mars in 2043.

Too little and tto late? To read more, click here.