What is the NASA Desert Rats?

The Desert RATS is a NASA-led team of research partners working together to prepare for human-robotic exploration. This "working group," led by NASA personnel, is comprised of both NASA and non-NASA Members.

NASA's Desert Research and Technology Studies (Desert RATS or D-RATS) is a group of teams which perform an annual series of field trials seeking to demonstrate and test candidate technologies and systems for manned exploration of the surface of the Moon, Mars, or other rocky bodies.

Desert RATS began in 1998, reviving Apollo-style lunar exploration training from decades earlier. The field event takes place for around ten days each year, usually in September, in planned locations surrounding Flagstaff, Arizona. In recent years tests have been conducted near Meteor Crater. The rugged terrain, temperature swings, and dirt and dust provide a reasonable simulation of conditions on Mars. The trials at D-RATS may help to fulfill the goals of Project Constellation and the Vision for Space Exploration.

NASA Kennedy Space Center's Desert RATS

Every September, after the summer rain backs off but before the mornings get too cold, a pack of RATS descends on the desert near Flagstaff, Ariz., to spend two weeks testing technologies that will play a vital role in the future of space exploration.

“Our role in Desert RATS is to make sure everything can communicate, and make sure people back in the mission control building at Johnson Space Center can connect and interact with the test site," Seibert explained.

Additionally, the cryogenics surface systems group revealed a new technology that will allow lunar explorers to recharge their liquid air packs with super-cold consumables without the interference of lunar dust. Known as the "dust-tolerant cryogenic quick disconnect," it uses a special bellows-like enclosure around the contacts to protect the seals from the damaging dust

The interactivity, cooperation and rehearsals between the Desert RATS teams at various NASA centers and universities continue throughout every year, culminating in the annual desert test. This ongoing process means problems are rooted out long before new flight hardware.

Why are human missions to Mars needed?

According to NASA, a manned mission to Mars is needed, because the real-time decision-making capabilities and spontaneous nature of humans can bring a new experience and perspective to the exploration of Mars that the robotic missions do not allow. Humans are more flexible, adaptable, and perceptive than current robots. According to Steve Squyres, an astronomy professor at Cornell University and principal investigator of the Mars Exploration Rover Mission, “we are many decades from robots that can match humans, even in the lab, and laboratory robotics is about 20 years ahead of space robotics.”

http://aerospacescholars.jsc.nasa.gov/HAS/cirr/em/9/2.cfm
http://www.marsdaily.com/reports/Are_manned_missions_needed_to_explore_Mars_and_beyond_999.html

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part IX

Many could argue that the biggest risk of a manned mission to Mars is the human factor. The lowest energy round trip to Mars is nearly three years. During this trip, the astronauts are confined in such a small spacecraft that they are unable to distance themselves from each other. This may lead to unwanted tensions between the crew members. Many studies have indicated that due to the isolated and confined nature of spaceflight, there are many evidences of serious interpersonal conflicts between the crew members in long-duration space missions.

“The failure of flight crews to cooperate and work effectively with each other or with flight controllers has been a periodic problem in both US and Russian space flight programs. Interpersonal distrust, dislike, misunderstanding, and poor communication have led to potentially dangerous situations.”

http://bioastroroadmap.nasa.gov/User/risk.jsp?showData=24

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part VIII

Another risk that we should consider is the cost of the mission. A human mission to Mars is expected to cost around $100 billion. This money will come at the cost of more important NASA projects. Recently, NASA has stated that it doesn’t have enough funding to scan the solar system for potentially dangerous asteroids. According to NASA, any asteroid that is bigger than 460 feet in diameter poses a threat to Earth. So without the necessary funds, NASA can no longer track these asteroids to prevent Earth from destruction.

http://www.spacescan.org/entry/nasa-lacking-funds-to-protect-earth-from-killer-asteroids/

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part VII

In addition to all of these previously mentioned hazards, there are three more major risks involved with a manned mission to Mars. One of these risks is the lack of real-time transmission from Mission Control. Considering the large distance between Mars and Earth, it takes about 20 minutes for a signal to travel from Mars to Earth. So if the astronauts were to encounter a severe problem with their equipments, they will have to wait for roughly 40 minutes to get a solution from Mission Control. During this idle time, the astronauts are at risk.

http://www.spacescan.org/entry/top-10-risks-in-manned-mission-to-mars/

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part VI

An additional hazard is the low temperatures on the surface of Mars. The temperature can range from -129° C to 0° C. A prolonged stay in such low temperatures could have a dangerous effect on the blood circulation or even cause hypothermia.

http://www.spacescan.org/entry/top-10-risks-in-manned-mission-to-mars/

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part V

Another potential hazard on the surface of Mars is the dust storms. They can be planet-wide, and can also last for months. These dust storms make it difficult for the astronauts to go outside and collect data. A study, led by University of California physicist Gregory Delory, found that “Martian dust storms can generate electric fields that rip apart water and carbon dioxide molecules in the planet's thin atmosphere. Those molecules would then lead to the formation of hydrogen peroxide and other corrosive chemicals that fall to the Martian surface as a sort of toxic snow.” These toxic chemicals could potentially put the astronauts at great risk.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/060731_mars_duststorms.html

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part IV

If the astronauts can somehow reach Mars safely, there will be some major hazards that await them on the surface of Mars. One of these hazards is the Martian dust. The dust on Mars is probably 50 times finer than on Earth. With a prolonged stay on Mars, the dust can potentially become hazardous. It can get into the equipments, cause airlocks to malfunction, or even get into the astronauts’ lungs. Russell Kerschmann, a pathologist at the NASA Ames Research Center, believes that the Martian dust could be dangerous due to its fineness and unknown chemical makeup. According to him, if the dust particles are small enough, they could penetrate deeply into the astronauts’ lungs and cause many health-related problems.

http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/070711_tw_mars_spaceflight.html

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part III

One major hazard in space is the potential collision with a meteoroid. Meteoroids and micro-meteoroids can be found throughout our solar system. These objects can be a hazard for a spacecraft traveling to Mars. A collision with a small particle of debris can significantly damage the spacecraft. This can put our astronauts at great risk, because currently, our spacecrafts do not have the radar tracking systems that can spot objects smaller than a baseball in advance.

http://aerospacescholars.jsc.nasa.gov/HAS/cirr/em/9/4.cfm

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part II

Another health-related risk of long-term spaceflight is the effects of prolonged stay in zero-to-low gravity. Under zero-gravity conditions, the astronauts will experience a decrease in muscle tone, strength, reflexes, and tolerance for physical work. Since Mars has one-third the gravitational force of Earth, the astronauts will be subjected to low-gravity conditions on the surface of Mars. The Martian gravity is low enough that it can lead to a decrease in bone size and volume, which includes a loss of calcium, nitrogen, and phosphorus. The bone loss could prove to be fatal as the astronauts return to a higher gravity environment. Their brittle bones would crumble under the gravitational force of Earth.

http://aerospacescholars.jsc.nasa.gov/HAS/cirr/em/9/6.cfm

The Risks of a Manned Mission to Mars, Part I

One of the biggest health-related risks involved with interplanetary spaceflight is the long-term exposure to solar and cosmic radiation. Once outside the protection of Earth’s magnetic field, the astronauts will be exposed to two sources of radiation: solar particle events (SPE) and galactic cosmic rays (GCR). SPE are high-energy particles emitted by the Sun during intense flares, while GCR are particles that originate outside the solar system. These radiations can increase the risk of cancer and damage the reproductive systems of the astronauts. Including the six months of travel time each way, a 2 ½ year round trip to Mars would expose the astronauts to nearly the lifetime limit of radiation allowed under NASA guidelines.

http://aerospacescholars.jsc.nasa.gov/HAS/cirr/em/9/4.cfm

Mars Clouds Drier Than Thought

Clouds over Mars contain less water than previously thought, according to new research using simulated clouds in a lab here on Earth. The clouds under study are made of water ice, like some clouds on Earth, said Tony Colaprete of NASA's Ames Research Center."However, they are forming at very cold temperatures, often below minus 100 degrees Celsius (minus 148 degrees Fahrenheit)," Colaprete said "What we have found in our laboratory studies is that it is much harder to initiate cloud formation at these cloud temperatures than what we thought."In the simulation, the cloud particles are larger than expected, and they "fall out of the atmosphere more quickly and, thus, result in less cloud mass and a drier atmosphere," Colaprete explained.

Google and NASA

Google and NASA formed a partnership a couple of years ago that has actually created some pretty cool results. Google's interactive maps of Earth, Mars, the sky, and the Moon have had a lot of help from NASA with some of the special touches, like photos that astronauts took of things like dust storms over the Middle East. Google has plans to put some of NASA's work up as online books as well, but the coolest part is probably that they are working on researching and engineering nanotechnology together. Employees of each of the partners have been sent to the other's headquarters to learn more about their counterparts and see where they can work together and take the partnership in coming years. I think that google and NASA are probably good for each other. As a business, Google is extremely innovative and successful. I look forward to seeing how they work together in the future.

India has capability to send spacecraft to Mars.....

India now has the capability to send a spacecraft to Mars at a cost of Rs 500 crore, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. The Minister of State in the Prime Minister's office Prithviraj Chavan said sending a spacecraft to Mars would help in understanding the evolution of the planet by studying Martian atmosphere and ionosphere. Sending this spacecraft would also help in studying dust storms, interaction of solar radiation and particles with Mars, magnetic field and plasma enviornment around Mars, surface topography, composition and distribution of water-ice.

How to beat Congress' ban of humans on Mars

Earlier this year, the House of Representaives passed a bill that would ban humans on Mars at NASA" "Provided, that none of the funds under this heading shall be used for any research, development, or demonstration activities related exclusively to the human exploration of Mars." The bill is held up in Congress and the anti-Mars language may be taken out. But in case the Mars ban becomes law, you can go to http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1012/1 to check out the Space Review's handy guide on how NASA can beat the ban and continue its research and development without breaking the law.

"Speedy" Earth set to overtake Mars

If you've noticed a glimpse of red in the sy lately, its just Mars. On Christmas day the Earth will overtake and lap Mars. Mars is opposite the sun and at its closest point to the Earth. Mars has come within 88 million miles of Earth this year, not nearly as close as in 2003, when Mars came within 56 million kilometers. Scientists will be using this opportunity to study Mars using satellites and a space telescope.

Mars will be at its closest point to Earth on Christmas Eve and will be visible just to the upper left of the Moon in the northeastern sky.

The downlow on Spirit

The rover Spirit has been in the news often recently because of its effort to make it to a safe spot for Mars winter. Spirit has been running strong for nearly 4 years and is showing signs of aging. Spirit is now carried a useless wheel and its power supply is extremely low. This is because the solar panels are so caked with dust that they are only 45% effective. Also its rock grinding teeth are worn down to nubs. Its also amazing to think that this rover have only covered a handful of miles <10 but have made so many useful discoverys. Spirit and its brother Opportunity have also captured nearly 100,000 phots. To put into perspective the age of Spirit: If these rovers were cars they'd have an equivalent of 800,000 miles. Some interesting facts for people who didn't know are the vitals of these rovers. The rovers are about 5 feet long, 5 feet high, and 7 feet wide and weigh 384 pounds. These facts are very interesting and the fight for life will continue for these rovers.
FOr more info see http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/nation/12/09/1209marsrover.html

Scientist Has Practice Idea for Manned Mars Mission

Dr. Wes Huntress, a former NASA associate administrator for science, has stated that he thinks humans should attempt a manned landing on a near-Earth asteroid before sending people to Mars. Huntress stated that it would give NASA an opportunity to test equipment and procedures. Huntress also thinks that it would give NASA the confidence necessary to embark on a manned Mars mission.

Source:
http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/1197108906298870.xml&coll=1

Zubrins New Book

Bob Zubrin has come out with a new book entitled Energy Victory. To add to what Professor Bates says about this guy, this book gives alot of information on his thinking once you scratch the surface. Zubrin now tackles problems like Muslim terrorism, poverty in developing nations, farm subsidies, and others to which he has a simple solution. I think seeing this book it makes us realize that Zubrin seems to have a lot of answers to many complex problems in which he thinks that answers are very simple. This gives a little insight into the mind of Bob Zubrin and makes us realize that he isn't just trying to tackle Mars, but also trying to make a name for himself in other areas of our society. Check out this review of his new book:
http://www.webcommentary.com/asp/ShowArticle.asp?id=websterb&date=071207