While researching today for an article about the past, present and future of spacesuit design—in honor of NASA’s upcoming tests of prototypes for its Constellation spacesuit system—I read a lot about NASA’s Constellation program.
The program is a comprehensive revamping of the administration’s technologies to meet its vision for future space exploration. Laid out back in 2004’s “Vision for Space Exploration,” the plan was announced by President Bush and received with no small degree of sarcasm from critics that felt putting a man on Mars was less important than addressing the problems of a troubled world.
Among the goals expressed in “The Vision” were the development of the Orion spacecraft and launch of a manned Orion mission by 2014; the Constellation suits currently being tested were designed specifically for the Orion space vehicle. The exploration of Mars by crewed missions by 2020 was also a goal. A man on Mars within the decade? Is such a thing possible?
One of the gifts offered by the turning of a new decade is the ability to look back at how things have changed in 10 years, and look forward to a decade of progress.
The Huffington Post celebrated the new year with a nostalgic look at 12 technologies that became obsolete last decade. CDs, landline phones, camera film and newspaper classifieds all made the ill-fated list, dealt death blows by digital media and its kin.
And as The Huffington Post looked back, many looked ahead to a decade of innovation, including the Times Online, which shared with readers predictions for the next 10 years offered by top scientists.
“Nothing much is going to happen in the next 10 years. Of course, that’s not counting the diesel-excreting bacteria, the sequencing of your entire genome for $1,000, massive banks of frozen human eggs, space tourism, the identification of dark matter, widespread sterilisation of young adults, telepathy, supercomputer models of our brains, the discovery of life’s origins, maybe the disappearance of Bangladesh and certainly the loss of 247m acres of tropical forest.”
But what mention of manned missions to Mars? Though no scientists weighed in on NASA’s ambitious vision, ubiquitous businessman and space tourism pioneer Richard Branson did say, “Space tourism will have taken off … [and NASA will have a] clear plan to get to Mars with a manned mission.”
Though having a plan to get to Mars is quite different from actually getting to Mars, small progress is still progress. One can look at the upcoming tests of the Constellation spacesuits as the humble beginning of a very lofty mission. Spacesuits to start the decade, men wearing those spacesuits on Mars to end the decade? Here’s looking forward to an exciting 10 years!
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