When will NASA send humans to Mars?

A report released this week from the National Research Council identifies several obstacles to this long-held dream but, human exploration of Mars may be possible if we commit sufficient resources and technology, says Dr. Robert Braun a member of the technical committee that contributed to the 286-page Pathways to Exploration report.

”The report stresses the importance of NASA investments in a broad range of advanced space technologies to bring the nation's human exploration goals within our reach. These same investments build our nation's economic and national security, " said Braun, a former chief technologist with NASA, currently the director of Georgia Tech's Center for Space Technology And Research."

"Human exploration of space is among the most daunting engineering challenges ever undertaken. Expanding human presence into deep space requires ingenuity, dedication and a sustained investment in new technologies and capabilities."

After reviewing several areas of possible benefit – the economy, national security, international relations, inspiration, scientific discovery and human survival – the report found that “a national consensus on the long-term future of human spaceflight beyond our commitment to the ISS remains elusive.”

The Pathways report encourages scientists, policy makers, and others to take larger questions into consideration before abandoning this ambitious goal.

“Having considered past and current space policy, explored the international setting, articulated the enduring questions and rationales, and identified public and stakeholder opinions, the committee draws on all this information to ask a fundamental question: What type of human spaceflight program would be responsive to these factors? This committee argues that it is a program in which humans operate beyond LEO [low earth orbit] on a regular basis—in other words, a sustainable human exploration program beyond LEO.”

Read the report