Getting to Mars and Back

A mission planned by Imperial College of London calls for a trip for astronauts to go to Mars and return back to Earth. The space craft would use ice from underneath the planet’s surface to create fuel for the return trip to our planet. Astronauts would travel in a 30 foot long ship that would launch on a typical rocket. Later in the journey, it would separate from a lander module but remain tethered via a cable.

Once in deep space, the lander would begin to spin and gain a common center of gravity, creating artificial gravity for the people on board the spacecraft. This vehicle would have a shield of water and superconducting magnets to protect the people on board from cosmic radiation. After a nine month trip to Mars, the astronauts would move into the lander, separate from the initial vehicle they were in, and descend towards the surface to the planet. Using parachutes and the lander, the astronauts would eventually make a landing on the red planet.

Radiation would be a major problem for the astronauts while they’re on Mars. They would have to find a way to shelter themselves from the radiation. The return trip to Earth would follow this similar process just going the other way. The diagram above gives you a good visual idea of the plan that they would follow.

Is this remotely realistic? A lot could go wrong between leaving Earth, going to Mars, and returning to Earth.

Credit to cnet.com for the image and story.