Exploration of mars has been the topmost priority for almost every private and public space
agency.
As we all know Elon Musk has been on a sprint to reach and explore mars, and make new discoveries
as soon as possible on the red planet!
Both NASA and Elon Musks’ SpaceX have the same goal of making life sustainable on mars.
These two big guys, NASA and SpaceX have now teamed up for their quest of colonization
of mars.
Currently, NASA and SpaceX are leading this industry.
Their recent discoveries are just mind-blowing and will most definitely change the trajectory
of Mars exploration.
But what is this terrific discovery?
To know more, join us today in this video where we reveal NASA and Elon Musk’s new
discovery which will change everything!
Mars often referred to as the red planet, is the second-smallest planet in the solar
system, larger than only mercury.
It is the fourth planet from the Sun just after our very own planet Earth, which stands
third!
The minimum distance between earth and mars as per NASA is about 54.6 million kilometers!
It is estimated that humans will set foot on Mars by the mid-2030s.
Just the thought of reaching mars is inconceivable as well as intimidating.
NASA has reportedly invested in the SpaceX launch vehicle known as the Starship.
SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket collectively referred to as Starship
represents a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo
to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
Starship is said to be the world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, with
the ability to carry in excess of 100 metric tonnes to the Earth’s orbit.
Musk in an interview proclaimed “Objectively, the cost efficiency of SpaceX is the best
in history, I think, for any rocket development,” Musk then continued to say “We are talking
about a rocket that’s more than twice the mass and thrust of a Saturn V”
The gigantic rocket is said to travel at a speed of 39000 kilometers per hour.
This implies that it’ll take around 7 months for us to reach mars.
What is even more unimaginable is that the people who will be reaching mars would have
to stay there for 3 months until their return.
During this period they’ll have to wait for the earth to properly align itself before
starting the return trip.
Elon Musk and the team are super confident that their spaceship is the cheapest and the
most efficient one and unlike any other rocket, it is reusable.
Yes, you heard that right!
Moreover, Starship is said to be powered by methane and oxygen, both of which are present
in abundance in space.
The return trip to earth is estimated to cost around a HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS!
Apparently, the journey is also not an easy one.
Musk declared that traveling to Mars is “far from being some sort of escape hatch,” as
“it will be extremely difficult and dangerous and tough.”
As per the records, 18 astronauts have already lost their lives in their journey earlier
out of which NASA accounts for fourteen of them while the rest were Russians
Another interesting fact that NASA and SpaceX have discovered about mars is that As easy
as it is to buy land on earth, it is not possible to buy a piece of land on Mars.
Now the obvious question is why?
According to Article II of the outer space treaty, it is declared that
“Outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national
appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other
means.”
This in layman’s terms means that no person or country can claim even a single piece of
rock on Mars.
No one can claim their ownership on mars.
Moreover, This further encourages the tech genius Elon Musk to colonize mars.
Elon Musk is quite determined to send a non crewed spaceship to Mars by 2024 and has promised
to send a completely filled spaceship by 2026.
Awesome right!
Elon’s primary goal is to establish a self-sustaining city on the planet Mars by 2050.
Apart from these, what makes life not sustainable on earth is the fact that the earth is quite
hot, which is not the case with mars.
Mars on the contrary is quite cold and receives slight warmth from the sun since it receives
very little light from the sun.
Due to the absence of a global magnetic field, the atmospheric pressure on mars is also quite
low, lower than the atmospheric pressure of the human body, which when combined with a
temperature of negative 60 degrees, makes it almost impossible for us to survive on
Mars.
It is said that the atmospheric pressure on Mars is so low that as soon as a person steps
on Mars, their organs will rupture within two minutes.
Scary?
I guess it is.
The same plants that grow on earth cannot grow on mars because the Martian soil is covered
with regolith, which has toxic minerals that impede the growth of plants.
Also, the plants that grow on the planet earth have inherently adapted themselves to the
atmospheric conditions on earth which make it difficult for them to grow on Mars.
Scientists are still researching ways to synthetically grow food on Mars.
Fingers Crossed!
NASA’s rover Curiosity, which runs all over the Gale crater on Mars, has already discovered
traces of liquid water on the surface of Mars.
When curiosity reached the peak of a mountain named Mount Sharp, it discovered that over
one thousand feet of rocks formed as mud at the bottom of shallow lakes.
Through curiosity, it was also possible to discover the abundance of methane gas on Mars.
Methane is only formed by living organisms or when rocks react with water.
The way the rocks are arranged on earth is very similar to the way the rocks are arranged
on mars, with the older rocks being at the bottom and the younger rocks at the top.
Another similarity between earth and mars is the length of a day.
A day on earth takes 24 hours whereas a day on earth takes about 24.6 hours.
However, a year on earth takes 365 and one-fourth days whereas a year on mars is about 687 days!
Hopefully, there’ll be new watches made in the future which will show the time of
both the planets.
Tesla, another tech giant founded by Elon Musk, has already designed a mobile phone
model called pi which will be used by the people on both earth and mars.
The highest mountain peak discovered on mars is about 26 kilometers in height which is
more than three times the height of Mount Everest.
The partnership between NASA and SpaceX began when NASA funded with a contract of 2.9 billion
for a human landing system.
The success of this project will most probably influence their partnership and most likely
affect the landing of humans on Mars.
The two companies trust each other very much.
Even the hiring process at SpaceX is so strict that the final interview is taken by the tech
genius Elon Musk himself.
Cool right?
Another rover known as the perseverance rover which landed on the jezero crater will further
help in the exploration of mars.
The rover was initially sent to seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock
and regolith.
NASA has also been using the James Webb telescope to find out more about the Martian weather
and reveal many more mysteries residing in mars.
It is also designed to use its infrared capabilities to spot any chemicals in the planet’s atmosphere.
With time passing by, more collaborations are expected between NASA and SpaceX as they
prepare for the colonization of mars.
With more advancement of technology, they have a greater chance of sprinting towards
their goal as soon as possible even before China and Russia.
It is the duty of SpaceX to ensure that NASA and America stays ahead of the two tech giants
china and Russia.
However, we all should be aware of the fact that humans still need to work way harder
to reach Mars, and knowing Elon, he’ll surely make human transportation to mars inevitable
and would make sure that Starship plays the major role.
That’s all for today folks, meet you in the next one.
See ya!
Check our newest video on the screen, you will be amazed.