Mars One is a private spaceflight project led by Dutch entrepreneur, Bas Lansdorp, to establish a permanent human colony on Mars.
Announced in June 2012, the plan is to send a communication satellite and path finder lander to the planet by 2016 and, after several stages, land four humans on Mars for permanent settlement in 2023. A new set of four astronauts would then arrive every two years.
The project is endorsed by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Gerard ‘t Hooft.
Mars One became a not for profit foundation (Stichting under Dutch law) in early October 2012.
A one way trip excluding the cost of maintaining four astronauts on Mars until they die is claimed to cost approximately 6 billion USD. For comparison, an “austere” manned Mars mission (including a temporary stay followed by a return of the astronauts) proposed by NASA in 2009 had a projected cost of 100 billion USD after an 18 year program.
As of May 2013, over 80,000 people have indicated interest to be explorers on the one-way trips to Mars. Initial screening of the applicant pool will begin before the end of 2013.
Mars One, the not-for-profit foundation, is the controlling stockholder of the for-profit Interplanetary Media Group. A global reality-TV media event is intended to provide most of the funds to finance the expedition. It should begin with the astronaut selection process (with some public participation) and continue on through the first years of living on Mars.
Mars One is not the first organization to ponder the idea of a manned mission to Mars.
|
| There have been many plans to do just this. And yet, none have come to fruition. Why should Mars One succeed? There are several reasons, as described in some detail, below:
|
Yes it is! Mars One has been working on this project in secret since January of 2011. It has taken us until May 2012 to expose it publicly because we are then certain of its technical feasibility and means of finance.
A manned mission to Mars is expensive. We plan to fund it by making it the biggest media spectacle in history. This way, everyone will get the chance to not only watch the astronauts make their journey, but choose who gets to do so. Four people, icons, who will leave their life on Earth behind and start an adventure on a new planet tens of millions of miles away.
Human settlement on Mars by 2023
Mars One has developed a mission to establish a human settlement on Mars built entirely upon existing technology. While the integration of systems proven in prior missions does greatly improve the chance of success, it by no means eliminates the risk or challenge of such an incredible endeavor. Sending humans to Mars remains a phenomenal undertaking by all standards and, as such, presents very real risks and challenges.
United States President John F. Kennedy said in his famous Rice Moon speech “We choose to go to the Moon, not because it is easy, but because it is hard”.
Mars One takes on the challenge of establishing a settlement on Mars with the same frame of mind, knowing all great endeavors, especially space exploration, incorporate risk of lost time, resources, … and sometimes lives. Venturing to Mars is no exception.
The challenge is to identify the risks in every step of the ten year Mission, from astronaut selection through training, from launch to living on Mars. Mars One has incorporated into its Mission plan a detailed risk analysis protocol, built by highly experienced individuals, some of them with experience at NASA and the ESA. Ever evolving, ever improving, Mars One is constantly working to reduce the risk of delay and failure at every level. For example, the Mars lander will be tested eight times prior to the landing of the first crew, using identical vehicles. As is standard in the aerospace industry, every component will be selected for its simplicity, durability, and capacity to be repaired using the facilities that are available to the astronauts on Mars.
An important aspect of risk management is for quality information to be shared between suppliers and made readily available to all parties. In the case of the Mars One Mission, this includes sponsors, investors, aerospace suppliers, and of course, the astronauts themselves. Because the Mission is ultimately funded and supported by the global audience, Mars One also desires for the general public to have a sense of what the risks are and how Mars One is working to mitigate them.
Mars One identifies two major risk categories: the loss of human life and cost overruns.
Human space exploration is dangerous at all levels. After more than sixty years of humans leaving the far Earth below, the risk of space flight is similar to that of climbing Mount Everest. Mars is an unforgiving environment where a small mistake or accident can result in large failure, injury, and death. Every component must work perfectly. Every system (and its backup) must function without fail or human life is at risk.
With advances in technology, shared experience between space agencies, what was once a one-shot endeavor becomes routine and space travel does become more viable.
Cost overruns are also not uncommon in large projects in any arena. The risk for cost overrun in the Mars One Mission is reduced by using existing technologies, and by the fact that about 66% of the cost is associated with launch and landing–both of which are well understood and proven variables.
The proposed Mars One budget includes a large safety margin to take into account significant mission failures as well as smaller but costly failures of components on Mars.
Mars One has developed a detailed risk analysis profile which guides both its internal technical development as well as the relationships it builds with its aerospace suppliers. This risk analysis profile will continue to evolve and improve over the years prior to the first humans walking on the planet Mars.
Just two weeks into the nineteen week application period, nearly eighty thousand people have applied to the Mars One astronaut selection program in the hope of becoming a Mars settler in 2023. [ by May 10th 2013 80,000 people have applied for journey that has no chance of returning to Earth ]
Mars One has received applications from over 120 countries. Most applications come from USA (17324), followed by China (10241), United Kingdom (3581), Russia, Mexico, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Argentina and India.
Bas Lansdorp, Mars One Co-Founder and CEO said: “With seventy-eight thousand applications in two weeks, this is turning out to be the most desired job in history. These numbers put us right on track for our goal of half a million applicants.”
“Mars One is a mission representing all humanity and its true spirit will be justified only if people from the entire world are represented. I’m proud that this is exactly what we see happening,” he said.
As part of the application every applicant is required to explain his/her motivation behind their decision go to Mars in an one minute video. Many applicants are choosing to publish this video on the Mars One website. These are openly accessible on applicants.mars-one.com.
“Applicants we have received come from a very wide range of personalities, professions and ages. This is significant because what we are looking for is not restricted to a particular background. From Round 1 we will take forward the most committed, creative, resilient and motivated applicants,” said Dr. Norbert Kraft, Mars One Chief Medical Officer.
Mars One will continue to receive online applications until August 31st 2013. From all the applicants in Round 1, regional reviewers will select around 50-100 candidates for Round 2 in each of the 300 geographic regions in the world that Mars One has identified.
Four rounds make the selection process, which will come to an end in 2015;
Mars One will then employ 28-40 candidates, who will train for around 7 years. Finally an audience vote will elect one of groups in training to be the envoys of humanity to Mars.
Andrew Rader has always wanted to be an astronaut and he’s ready to do anything to get into space — even spend the rest of his life on Mars. The Ottawa native is one of at least 35 Canadians to apply for a mission to the Red Planet in 2023. Read more>>
Rader, 34, had already applied to become a member of the Canadian astronaut corps in 2009 but he wasn’t chosen. “I’ve always wanted to work in space and to be an astronaut is really my ultimate goal,” he said. Rader has discussed his far-out plan with his parents, and brother and sister, whom he said are supportive. Not everyone is thrilled with the idea, though. He said his aunt considers the idea a “suicide mission.” “There are enormous risks. That being said, I think that the risks are worth taking. I mean, major leaps required major risks,” he said. “Life is short, life is precious and that’s why you really should do major things that you believe in.” Rader admitted that he views the project as a “very, very long shot.” “The chances if it actually getting carried out as stated are extraordinarily slim,” he said. “(But) I think there is a very small chance that if all the dominoes fall in the right place, it could happen.”
More from Andrew Rader: http://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/a-one-way-trip-to-mars-at-least-35-canadians-say-sign-me-up-1.1275391
Mars One plans to establish the first human settlement on Mars. According to their schedule, the first crew of four astronauts would arrive on Mars in 2023, after a seven month journey from Earth. Further teams would join their settlement every two years, with the intention that by 2033 there would be over twenty people living and working on Mars. The astronaut selection process began on April 22 2013. [24]
As of April 2013, the mission plan is as follows:
The Mars One website states that the team behind Mars One began planning of Mars One in 2011. The company states that they researched the feasibility of the idea with specialists and expert organizations, and discussed the financial, psychological and ethical aspects of it.
7-month trip to Mars. The modules that would be used to create a habitat, with the help of robots, would be sent up first. Eventually, the first settlers would arrive following a seven-month trip. http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2013/05/10/one-way-mars-trip-canadians.html
Mars One has identified at least one potential supplier for each component of the mission. The major components are to be acquired from proven suppliers.
The Falcon Heavy from SpaceX is the anticipated launcher.
A manned interplanetary spacecraft which would transport the crew to Mars. It would be assembled in low earth orbit and comprise two propellant modules, a Transit Living Module (discarded just before arrival at Mars) and a lander (see “Human Lander” below).
The likely supplier for the Transit living module is Thales Alenia Space.
A satellite in Mars orbit to relay video, speech and data between the settlement and Earth, and the related transceivers on Mars and Earth.[29] The likely supplier for the satellite is Surrey Satellite Technology.
Mars One plans to use a 5 metres (16 ft)-diameter variant of SpaceX’s Dragon capsule. It would have a volume of ~25m3.
Mars One Dragon capsules will be used in five roles:
The rover would be unpressurized and support travel distances of 80 km (50 miles). The likely supplier for the rover is Astrobotic Technology.
The Mars Suit would be flexible to allow the settlers to work with both cumbersome construction materials and sophisticated machinery when they are outside the habitat while protecting them from the cold, low pressure and noxious gases of the Martian atmosphere. The likely supplier of the suits is ILC Dover.[36] On March 12, 2013, Paragon Space Development Corporation were contracted to develop concepts for life support and the Mars Surface Exploration Spacesuit System.
As of May 2013, over 78,000 people have indicated interest to be explorers on the one-way trips to Mars. Initial screening of the applicant pool will begin before the end of 2013.
The Mars One initiative bears similarity to a plan detailed in the 2010 book, “The Human Mission to Mars: Colonizing the Red Planet”, edited by Dr. Joel Levine, NASA Senior Scientist Science Directorate. The book’s authors included over 40 NASA scientists and engineers, including men who walked on the moon. The book gave a step-by step plan for establishing a colony of Mars, and in the chapter titled “Marketing Mars” included a marketing plan for raising over $100 billion dollars by selling naming rights and television rights, including reality TV competition for would-be astronauts. The “Marketing Mars” financing plan received significant media attention, and efforts were made to bring a bill before Congress to establish an official funding organization.
Chris Welch, director of Masters Programs at the International Space University has said “Even ignoring the potential mismatch between the project income and its costs and questions about its longer-term viability, the Mars One proposal does not demonstrate a sufficiently deep understanding of the problems to give real confidence that the project would be able to meet its very ambitious schedule.”
Space tourist Richard Garriott stated in response to Mars One, “Many have interesting viable starting plans. Few raise the money to be able to pull it off.”
Robert Zubrin, advocate for manned Martian exploration, said “I don’t think the business plan closes it. We’re going to go to Mars, we need a billion dollars, and we’re going to make up the revenue with advertising and media rights and so on. You might be able to make up some of the money that way, but I don’t think that anyone who is interested in making money is going to invest on that basis — invest in this really risky proposition, and if you’re lucky you’ll break even? That doesn’t fly.”
Wired magazine gave it a plausibility score of 2 out of 10 as part of their 2012 Most Audacious Private Space Exploration Plans.
As of January 2013 the Mars One advisory board includes:
On 31 August 2012, company officials announced that funding from its first sponsors had been received. Corporate sponsorship money will be used mostly to fund the conceptual design studies provided by the aerospace suppliers.
Sponsors for Mars One include:
Since December 2012 and the official announcement of their conversion to a Stichting, Mars One has been accepting one off and regular monthly donations through their website. As of 29 April 2013, Mars One has received $84,121 in donations.
History, they say, is written by the victors. But what happens when the victors have…
On August 7, 1985, a group of Soviet astronomers made a discovery that would baffle…
In the opening months of 2025, the world stands at a pivotal crossroads, a moment…
Imagine a crisp, moonlit night, the kind where the air is thick with mystery and…
In a stunning turn of events that has captivated both professional astronomers and skywatching enthusiasts,…
A century-old secret may soon see the light of day. Deep within the labyrinthine Apostolic…