NASA rescue ball - photos

**Elizabeth Greene** · Jul 27, 2021, 12:19 PM

I would guess this is more of a moral item than a real answer. Having something to say "we can save you" rather than the reality of saying "You're screwed." should make the Astronauts feel a little better.

I think it makes the bureaucrats feel better more than the astronauts. IIRC it was in the Gemini program that the astronauts had ejection seats for the Astronauts. They were extremely hesitant to use it because in testing it ejected too fast before the canopy could pop open. If they ever used it then ... insert a colorful metaphor about a bug on a windshield here.

I wonder what they're going to tell the folks on the first manned mission to Mars.

The number of known ways to die on this trip is staggering, and there are uncountable unknown ways for it to go wrong. You prepare the best that you can and have to accept that there will be things you can't fix, that no-one can fix, and those things will probably kill you.

There are people, myself included, that would volunteer to go to Mars with full knowledge that it's a one-way trip. If we wait until it's perfectly safe then we'll die a one-planet species.

**mklotz** · Jul 27, 2021, 12:39 PM

Round trip to Mars would take about 21 months. Nine to get there, three to do some science and wait for a return launch window, then nine more months to get back. More details on that here...

https://image.gsfc.nasa.gov/poetry/venus/q2811.html

Probably need the skill sets of at least six people who are going to have to live together in a soup can the size of a railroad tank car for the better part of two years without killing each other or going totally mental.

Forget the technical challenges of a manned mission; the psychological challenge is far more daunting.

**Moldyjim** · Jul 27, 2021, 02:49 PM

Originally Posted by mklotz

I wonder what they're going to tell the folks on the first manned mission to Mars.

See ya later, Bye?

**Moldyjim** · Jul 27, 2021, 02:52 PM

Originally Posted by mklotz

Round trip to Mars would take about 21 months. Nine to get there, three to do some science and wait for a return launch window, then nine more months to get back. More details on that here...

https://image.gsfc.nasa.gov/poetry/venus/q2811.html

Probably need the skill sets of at least six people who are going to have to live together in a soup can the size of a railroad tank car for the better part of two years without killing each other or going totally mental.

Forget the technical challenges of a manned mission; the psychological challenge is far more daunting.

Total agreement there. They should all go on a long road trip in a small minivan without stopping and prove they won't kill the kids, I mean the other astronauts half way there.

**mklotz** · Jul 27, 2021, 03:23 PM

Some other thoughts on a Mars mission...

Even if unmanned missions deposit food, water, shelter, life support equipment on Mars ahead of the astronauts, they're going to need a big spacecraft for all the equipment and consumables they'll need to get there. We will need to design and build a seriously bigger booster to get that into earth orbit or, alternatively, it will need to be assembled and tested in orbit. If the latter, the chances for a screw up are huge. Remember, this thing has to work flawlessly for eighteen months.

Two years in an alien environment provides a huge opportunity for serious injuries. Will we need to include an MD in the team? Somehow, EMT training for the crew members seems inadequate.

What if a team member dies on the mission? Do we bury him on Mars or transport the body back to earth for burial? Lots of opportunities for stress if the latter. If the former, a public relations nightmare for NASA.

Does NASA have to plan (and build) for a rescue mission? I can't see NASA telling the world, "It's broken and they'll all die in x days."

My personal opinion is that NASA's Mars mission is a carrot on a stick meant to justify its existence and a lever to obtain funds for more practical work. Once you think about the details of such a mission, it seems way out of scope for our current technological capability. Maybe in a few more decades...