Why Your Kids Will Live on Mars
Mars has a daytime temperature of 73 ºF, but a nighttime temperature of -100 ºF. Nearly 95% of the martian atmosphere is carbon dioxide, and the planet is constantly exposed to intense radiation. So why are humans so eager to go to Mars, and how would we ever make it habitable? In short, establishing a human settlement on Mars and making humans a multi-planetary species would be an astronomical (pun intended) step for humankind, and there are innovators making this dream a reality. The Spirit of Human Curiosity First of all, humans want (and need) to go to Mars for the spirit of adventure and exploration. Throughout all of history,…
Non-Rocket Spacelaunch – Tether satellite missions
This is the second part to the article about tether propulsion. It will focus on space missions that tested tethers in space. Gemini 11 mission: 1966 Gemini 11 mission with tether visible. Image credit: NASA. The first such mission took place in 1966. Gemini 11 deployed a 30m tether connecting it to the Agena target vehicle. It created a small amount of artificial gravity (0.00015 g) by spinning the two spacecraft. TSS-1 mission: 1992 The deployment of the TSS tethered satellite The TSS-1 (Tethered Satellite System-1) was a joint NASA-Italian Space Agency project. It was flown during STS-46 aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis from July 31 to August 8, 1992.…
