Man is one step closer to setting foot on the Red Planet, according to the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The space agency, which recently announced the historic discovery of flowing water on Mars, has just announced an updated plan for 'The Journey to Mars.'
"NASA is closer to sending American astronauts to Mars than at any point in our history," NASA Administrator, Charles Bolden, said in a recent statement.
"Today, we are publishing additional details about our journey to Mars plan and how we are aligning all of our work in support of this goal. In the coming weeks, I look forward to continuing to discuss the details of our plan with members of Congress as well as our commercial and our international and partners.
"The journey to Mars crosses three thresholds, each with increasing challenges as humans move farther from Earth," the agency reported. "NASA is managing these challenges by developing and demonstrating capabilities in incremental steps."
The first of these steps is pretty straight-forward. "Earth-reliant" activities, as NASA calls them, will be ongoing up until the day the Space Launch System (SLS) - NASA's latest flagship rocket and the "most powerful rocket ever built" - sends the Orion spacecraft on its way to Mars.
Gone are the days of uncertainty as competing space agencies scramble to claim alien soil. These days, agencies around the globe collaborate to ensure that no stone is left unturned with the safety of their explorers being paramount.
This then includes research into the effects of prolonged exposure to space. Experts with the Mars One colonial project (tentatively proposed for 2027) estimate that the journey to Mars will take anywhere between six and eight months. That's a bit longer than an average stay on the International Space Station (ISS).
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