Red planet express

Mars Curiosity Rover selfie (Nasa)
Mars Curiosity Rover selfie (Nasa)

Here’s some good news for those of you planning a trip to Mars.

According to this report, Nasa is looking at a way to reduce travel time to the red planetĀ  to just three days.

The secret, apparently, is something called photonic propulsion, which may or may not be related to warp speed on Star Trek. The Daily Mail, a British newspaper, describes it as “a technique that uses light from lasers to produce thrust to drive spacecraft”.

Given that no humans have actually been to Mars yet, the estimated average current mission time is 162 days, and the expectation is that people who go there won’t be able to return, I wouldn’t be racing out to buy a ticket right now.

But at the same time, I was born before men landed on the Moon, defying all expectations, so anything is possible.

Meanwhile, checkout Nasa.gov for the latest on space exploration.

 

 

One thought on “Red planet express”

  1. Given the current state of affairs on this ball of dirt, the lure of a one way all expenses paid trip to Mars seems very tempting.

    However, as I am convinced the Yanks never landed on the Moon, I am likewise convinced that a mission to Mars will have the same probability of failure.

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