Moon, Mars and more

NASA astronauts have begun testing new spacesuits that the agency plans to use on upcoming lunar missions as part of the Artemis program planned for the coming years (1). There is still an ambitious plan to land crew, men and women, at the Silver Globe in 2024.

It is already known that this time it is not about, but first about the preparation and then the construction of infrastructure for the intensive use of the Moon and its resources in the future.

Recently, the US agency announced that eight national space agencies have already signed an agreement called Artemis Accords. Jim Bridenstine, the head of NASA, announces that this is the start of the largest international coalition for lunar exploration, which will ensure a "peaceful and prosperous space future." Other countries will join the agreement in the coming months. In addition to NASA, the agreement was signed by the space agencies of Australia, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. India and China, which also have intelligence plans, are not on the list. silver globe i space mining development plan.

According to current ideas, the Moon and its orbit will play a key role as an intermediary and material base for such an expedition. If we are going to go to Mars in the fourth decade of this century, as NASA, China and others have announced, the 2020-30 decade should be a time of intense preparation. If none of the necessary actions are taken, then We will not fly to Mars in the next decade.

The original plan was Moon landing in 2028but Vice President Mike Pence called for four years to promote it. Astronauts are going to fly Orion spacecraftwhich will carry the SLS rockets that NASA is working on. Whether this is a real date remains to be seen, but technologically there is a lot going on around this plan.

For example, NASA recently built an entirely new landing system (SPLICE) that should make Mars much less risky. SPLICE uses a laser scanning system during descent, which allows you to stay on track and recognize the landing surface. The agency plans to test the system soon with a rocket (2), which is known to be a vehicle that can be recovered after flying into orbit. The bottom line is that the returning participant independently finds the best place to land.

2. New Shepard landing downhill

Let's pretend that plan to return people to the moon as early as 2024 will be successful. What's next? Next year, a module called Habitat should arrive at the Moongate, which is currently in the design stage, which we wrote about a lot in MT. NASA Gateway, space station on moon orbit (3) built together with international partners, will start earlier. But it won't be until 2025 when a US residential unit is delivered to the station that the real operation of the station will begin. Projects currently under development should allow for the simultaneous presence of four astronauts on board, and a series of planned lunar landers should turn the Gateway into a center of space activity and infrastructure for an expedition to Mars.

3. Space Station Orbiting the Moon - Rendering

Toyota on the moon?

This is reported by the Japan Air and Space Search Agency (JAXA). plans to extract hydrogen from lunar ice deposits (4) to use it as a source of fuel, according to the Japan Times. The aim is to reduce the cost of the country's planned lunar exploration in the mid-20s by creating a local source of fuel rather than transporting large volumes. fuel from earth.

The Japan Space Agency intends to work with NASA to create the Moon Gate mentioned above. A source of fuel, created locally according to this concept, would allow astronauts to be transported to the station from moon surface and vice versa. They can also be used to power vehicles and other infrastructure on the surface. JAXA estimates that about 37 tons of water is needed to provide enough fuel to transport to the Moongate.

JAXA also revealed the design of the six-wheel drive. hydrogen fuel cells self-propelled vehicle developed in collaboration with Toyota last year. Toyota is known to be a pioneer of hydrogen technology. Who knows, maybe in the future we will see moon rovers with the logo of a famous Japanese brand.

China has a new missile and big ambitions

Give less global publicity to your actions China is building a new missilewho will take their astronauts to the moon. The new launch vehicle was unveiled at the 2020 China Space Conference in Fuzhou, East China on September 18. The new launch vehicle is designed to launch a 25-ton spacecraft. The thrust of the rocket should be three times greater than that of China's most powerful Long March 5 rocket. The rocket must be three-section, like the well-known rockets. Delta IV Heavy i Falcon Heavyand each of the three parts should be 5 meters in diameter. The launch system, which does not yet have a name but is called "921 rocket" in China, is 87 meters long.

China has yet to announce a test flight date or potential moon landing. Neither the missiles that the Chinese have had so far, nor Shenzhou orbiterunable to meet the needs of the lunar landing. You also need a lander, which is not available in China.

China has not formally approved a program to place astronauts on the moon, but has been open about such missions. The rocket presented in September is a novelty. Previously, we talked about the concept. rockets long march 9which was to be similar in size to the NASA-built Saturn V or SLS rocket. However, such a huge rocket won't be able to make its first test flights until around 2030.

More than 250% more missions

According to a study by Euroconsult published in April 2020 entitled "Space Exploration Perspectives", global public investment in space exploration was nearly $20 billion in 2019, up 6 percent from last year. 71 percent of them spending the US. Space research funding is projected to increase to $30 billion by 2029 thanks to Moon exploration, development of transport and orbital infrastructure. Approximately 130 missions are expected over the next decade, compared with 52 missions over the past 10 years (5). So a lot will happen. The report does not foresee the end of the operation of the International Space Station. He's waiting for it ascension of the Chinese orbital space station and the Moon Gate. Euroconsult believes that due to greater interest in the Moon, costs for Martian missions may fall. Other missions should be funded at the same proportional level as before.

5. Space business plan for the next decade

Presently . Already in 2021, there will be a lot of traffic on Mars and its orbit. Another American rover, Perseverance, is due to land and conduct research. On board the rover were also samples of new spacesuit materials. NASA wants to see how different materials react to the Martian environment, which will help choose the right suits for future marsonauts. The six-wheeled rover also carries a small Ingenuity helicopter it plans to carry. experimental flights in the rarefied atmosphere of Mars.

Probes will be in orbit: the Chinese Tianwen-1 and owned by United Arab Emirates Hope. According to media reports, the Chinese probe also has a lander and a rover. If the entire mission were a success, next year we would have the first operational non-US Martian lander on the surface. Red Planet.

In 2020, the rover of the European agency ESA did not start as part of the ExoMars program. Launch postponed to 2022. There is not very clear information that India also wants to send a rover as part of the program. Mangalyan Mission 2 planned for 2024. In March 2025, the Japanese JAXA probe will enter Mars orbit to study of the moons of Mars. If the Mars-orbiting mission is successful, the spacecraft will return to Earth with samples in five years.

Elon Musk's SpaceX also has plans for Mars and plans to send an uncrewed mission there in 2022 to "confirm the existence of water, identify threats, and build initial energy, mining, and life-sustaining infrastructure." Musk also stated that he wants SpaceX to ship it in 2024. manned spacecraft on Marsa, whose main goal will be "to build a fuel depot and prepare for future manned flights." It sounds a little fantastic, but the general conclusion from these announcements is this: SpaceX he will undertake some kind of Martian mission in the coming years. It is worth adding that SpaceX also announced lunar missions. Japanese entrepreneur, designer and philanthropist Yusaku Maezawa was due to make the first tourist flight to orbit the Moon in 2023, as it should be understood, aboard the large Starship rocket now being tested.

To asteroids and great moons

Hopefully next year it will also go into orbit. James Webb Space Telescope (6) who should be the successor Hubble telescope. After a long period of delays and setbacks, this year's main tests have been successfully completed. In 2026, another important space telescope, the European Space Agency's Planetary Transits and Oscillations of Stars (PLATO), should be launched into space, whose main task is to be.

6. Webb Space Telescope - Visualization

In the most optimistic scenario, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will send the first group of Indian astronauts into space as early as 2021.

Lucy, part of NASA's Discovery program, is scheduled to launch in October 2021. Explore six Trojan asteroids and a main belt asteroid.. The two swarms of Trojans upstream and downstream of Jupiter are thought to be dark bodies composed of the same material as the outer planets orbited near Jupiter. Scientists hope that the results of this mission will revolutionize our understanding and possibly life on Earth. For this reason, the project is called Lucy, a fossilized hominid who provided insight into human evolution.

In 2026, we will take a closer look at Psyche, one of the ten largest objects in the asteroid belt, which, according to scientists, nickel iron core protoplanet. The launch of the mission is scheduled for 2022.

In the same 2026, the Dragonfly mission to Titan should start, the goal of which is to land on the surface of Saturn's moon in 2034. The novelty in it is the design for surface examination and examination robotic aircraftwhich will move from place to place as it appears. This decision is likely due to the uncertainty in the ground on Titan and the fear that the rover on wheels would be quickly immobilized. This is a mission unlike any other, because the destination is different from any known to us. solar system body.

It is possible that the mission to another moon of Saturn, Enceladus, will begin in the second half of the XNUMXs. This is just an idea for now, not a specific mission with a budget and a plan. NASA envisions that this will be the first deep space mission partially or wholly funded by the private sector.

A little earlier, the JUICE (7) probe, the launch of which was announced by ESA in 2022, will arrive at the place of its research. It is expected to reach the Jupiter system in 2029 and reach the orbit of Ganymede four years later. largest moon in the solar system and explore other moons in years to come, Callisto and the most interesting for us Europe. It was originally intended to be a joint European-American mission. Ultimately, however, the US will launch its Europa Clipper probe to explore Europe in the mid-XNUMXs.

7. JUICE Mission - Visualization

It is possible that completely new missions will appear on the schedule of NASA and other agencies, especially those aimed at Venus. This is due to recent discoveries of substances that indicate the possibility of the existence of living organisms in the atmosphere of the planet. NASA is currently discussing budget changes that would allow for an entirely new mission or even several. Venus is not that far away, so it's unthinkable.