Will humans reasonably be able to travel to Mars in the near future? originally appeared on Quora – the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.
Answer by Jackie Alan Giuliano, Ph.D, 20 years working for NASA/JPL, on Quora:
Well, this won’t be a very popular answer among the futurists (nor with my dear friend and colleague with whom I worked for many years, Rod Pyle who wrote a great post for this question – sorry Rod), but no, I don’t think we will be able to “reasonably” travel to Mars anytime soon. In fact, I really don’t think we should try!
You may be surprised to hear that from a 20 year NASA veteran, but talking about a trip to Mars is, unfortunately, just rhetoric by the same old unfocused NASA who has lost their way looking for a quick, easy way back into the news.
You see, the technology to get us to Mars doesn’t even exist yet, nor are we very close. Technology to completely recycle every bit of bodily waste, to make water and fuel, and to generate a livable, breathable atmosphere from a closed, balanced system is very far off. No technology exists to carry enough food, air, water, and fuel for such a mission, so they would have to find a way to make it along the way. And let’s not even talk about the fact that we have no idea how to make fuel, water, and air once the crew is stuck on Mars, as they would be for about a year while the planets line up again before they could return.
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