Hey space enthusiasts! 🌌 NASA just hit the pause button on its ambitious plan to bring samples from Mars back to Earth. Why? They're looking for a faster, cheaper way to make it happen! 🛸
The original plan was getting a bit too heavy on the wallet and the calendar. A recent review pegged the cost at a whopping $8 to $11 billion, with samples arriving around 2040—way later than anyone wants. 😱
NASA's big boss, Administrator Bill Nelson, said that's just not going to cut it. He's called on private companies and NASA's own centers to come up with fresh ideas to revamp the mission. \"We want to get every new and fresh idea that we can,\" Nelson said. 🧠💡
With budgets tightening, NASA doesn't want to drain other cool science projects to fund this one. So they're crowd-sourcing for solutions and hope to get some genius proposals by late fall. 🍂
Meanwhile, the Perseverance rover is chilling on Mars' Jezero Crater, collecting rock and soil samples like a boss. 🤖 So far, it's gathered 24 samples since landing in 2021, hunting for signs of ancient Martian life. 👽
The dream is to bring at least some of these precious samples back to Earth sometime in the 2030s and for less than $7 billion. But it's no easy task! It would involve a spacecraft landing on Mars, grabbing the samples, launching off the Martian surface (which has never been done before!), and then meeting up with another spacecraft to bring them home. Talk about an interplanetary relay race! 🏃♂️🌖🏃♀️
Nicky Fox, NASA's science mission chief, isn't spilling the tea on new timelines or budgets just yet. \"We've never launched from another planet, and that's actually what makes Mars sample return such a challenging and interesting mission,\" Fox said. 🚀
Scientists are super excited to get their hands on these Martian goodies. Testing them in Earth labs could unlock secrets about ancient life on Mars and help plan where astronauts should explore when they finally step foot on the Red Planet in the 2040s. 🌞
So, keep your eyes on the skies! 🌠 NASA's next big move could redefine space exploration, and who knows, maybe one of us will be part of the team blasting off to Mars someday! 🚀✨
Reference(s):
NASA is seeking a faster, cheaper way to bring Mars samples to Earth
cgtn.com
