NASA Spacecraft Confirms Martian Water, Mission Extended

[Xander67]

:boing:
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Laboratory tests aboard NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander have identified water in a soil sample. The lander's robotic arm delivered the sample Wednesday to an instrument that identifies vapors produced by the heating of samples.

"We have water," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer, or TEGA. "We've seen evidence for this water ice before in observations by the Mars Odyssey orbiter and in disappearing chunks observed by Phoenix last month, but this is the first time Martian water has been touched and tasted."

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/phoenix/release.php?ArticleID=1815

[Cassie]

Cool.
It's about time we send some people there. The robotic missions do good science so long as everything functions as it should; but it needs humans on the spot to respond to things and generally engender some enthusiasm for space exploration.

[Infinite Grey]

Wicked! I'm totally geeking out here.

[Against The Tide]

awesome :D :D :D

[Xander67]

Cool.
It's about time we send some people there. The robotic missions do good science so long as everything functions as it should; but it needs humans on the spot to respond to things and generally engender some enthusiasm for space exploration.

yeah, well they are building the spaceship now that will take the first team up in a year or two..

[Caitlin.ann]

Awesome! :)

[Infinite Grey]

Cool.
It's about time we send some people there. The robotic missions do good science so long as everything functions as it should; but it needs humans on the spot to respond to things and generally engender some enthusiasm for space exploration.

There are a few problems to be solved before a manned mission to Mars is attempted... the most immediate is finding someone to fund it.

The other, well prolonged exposure to microgravity environment is not good for humans. With current technologies, the trip will take 6 to 8 months - with a launch window open once every two years (I think these are the numbers). Our bone density is directly proportionate to the pressure placed on them, 6 months in space will do nasty things to the body. T

The second is power source and environment... though we could conceivable do the ACNE rocket strapped to the astronaut's assess thing like the Apollo missions.

Landing and launching on and from the surface of Mars is also tricky, it's very different from the Moon. Mars has an atmosphere, and a third of the Earth's gravity, though the gravity is the main issue here. But it bring me back to the second problem. 6 months to get there, a week or two on the surface and for buggering around in orbit - another 6 months back. Over a year in Micro gravity, and weaker than Earth gravity.

Then there is cosmic radiation, Mars has no intrinsic magnetic field. Which means that every time the sun spews out solar flares and the like, the Martian explorers will have to high tail it to cover - roasty toasty Martians.

[Cassie]

There are a few problems to be solved before a manned mission to Mars is attempted... the most immediate is finding someone to fund it.

The other, well prolonged exposure to microgravity environment is not good for humans. With current technologies, the trip will take 6 to 8 months - with a launch window open once every two years (I think these are the numbers). Our bone density is directly proportionate to the pressure placed on them, 6 months in space will do nasty things to the body. T

The second is power source and environment... though we could conceivable do the ACNE rocket strapped to the astronaut's assess thing like the Apollo missions.

Landing and launching on and from the surface of Mars is also tricky, it's very different from the Moon. Mars has an atmosphere, and a third of the Earth's gravity, though the gravity is the main issue here. But it bring me back to the second problem. 6 months to get there, a week or two on the surface and for buggering around in orbit - another 6 months back. Over a year in Micro gravity, and weaker than Earth gravity.

Then there is cosmic radiation, Mars has no intrinsic magnetic field. Which means that every time the sun spews out solar flares and the like, the Martian explorers will have to high tail it to cover - roasty toasty Martians.
All true enough but I think 40 years experience on skylab, Mia, shuttle missions and the international space station must have pointed to solutions to many of these problems. I think the biggest obstacle is probably money and the shear will to actually do it. The political space race of the 1960s was a big motivator and enabled mankind to land people on the moon and bring them back safely using less computing power than most people have on their mobile phones these days.

Where ther is a will there is a way.

I think the first manned mission to Mars will be an international effort probably paid for largely by private enterprise... Unless the Chinese land a man on the moon within the next few years... That might be quite a motivating force.

[Garm]

This news is quite the contrast to the rest of what's comming up on the papers

It's a relief

let's see gang rape suspects acquitted because of time limitations

Man decapitated on bus

and the like

best news today, this be

[Infinite Grey]

All true enough but I think 40 years experience on skylab, Mia, shuttle missions and the international space station must have pointed to solutions to many of these problems. I think the biggest obstacle is probably money and the shear will to actually do it. The political space race of the 1960s was a big motivator and enabled mankind to land people on the moon and bring them back safely using less computing power than most people have on their mobile phones these days.

Where ther is a will there is a way.

I think the first manned mission to Mars will be an international effort probably paid for largely by private enterprise... Unless the Chinese land a man on the moon within the next few years... That might be quite a motivating force.

There are solutions, it's just developing the technology for those solutions... think a tumbling spacecraft will be the best bet.

oh, and it is already an international effort - NASA has neither the funding nor the think tank anymore to do by themselves. The Phoenix Mars Lander had a lot of international parts in it - closely collaborated with ESA. not to forget the Canadians.

I do not believe there will be another space race, I think the world will come together in the future in this sense... not for some lofty ideals, but for economic reasons.

[Voidflower]

Sending people there is romantic idea but much more practical would be to wait for (entire humanity) until there are resources and tehcnology to create experimental but permanent colony there.