What is the direction of Mars research?
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in our Solar System and for centuries it will attract people. It has many features of similar features on Earth, a similar rotary period and the season on Earth, and it is possible that Mars contains liquid water in some form. Mars research over the past decades has been full of surprises and a large amount of information, and is currently Mars Research a priority in the space programs of many nations. on and below the surface of the planet. Phoenix represented a new chapter in Mars' research because it was the first mission to be led by the university team, led by the University of Arizona as partners of six nations, as well Private sector. This type of intermediate cooperation will probably be a common topic in future research Mars because funds become rare at the government level and because the potential of university scientists substantiallyadds the missions more obvious.
The planet has three operating orbites around it, more than any planet except Earth. Mars Express was launched by the European Space Agency in June 2003 and was the first extensive mission started. Mars Express provided scientists with a lot of information and also served as a supporting orbiter for landing missions. Mars Reconissance Orbiter , which launched in August 2005, acts as a reconnaissance vehicle for landing missions and other orbits, monitoring information about weather and analysis of surface conditions. Orbitermá also the most advanced telecommunications device so far, which allows you to transmit a huge amount of data back to the ground.
After the Phoenix mission , several new missions are planned for Mars, which today extends the scope of Mars research. In 2011, an improved version of Mars Exploration Rovers, called Mars Science Laboratory, will go to Mars. MSL will be capable of everything Mars Rovers have been, but it will be much faster and has added abilities, as a laser analyzer that can detect the composition of rocks from large distances.
Finland and Russia are joining the Metnet program, which aims to provide a much more comprehensive way to look at Mars. Dozens of Rovers will be set on the planet at different points to create a network of observers that can start to look deeper at the atmosphere and meteorology of Mars. These Rovers will be launched from 2009 to 2019.
Finally, both European Space and NASA plan to send an expedition with a crew to Mars in the coming decades. NASA plans to use Orion Back to the Moon around 2020 as a gateway to Jump to Mars to 2037. The European Space Agency will similarly launch missions leading to an eventual mission with a crew in the 20th century, including a probe that returns to Earth with Mars samples.