Employment Opportunity

I found an article a pretty interesting arcticle in a newspaper. It said that the Russian government was looking to employ 6 males of different ethnicity to sit in a capsule for 500 days. The purpose of the experiment would be to simiulate the time it would take for a trip to Mars. The pay would be based on how much your home countries space program is willing to pay. The participant from Russia would make enough money to purchase a flat in Moscow. Hopefully the United States my be a little more generous with their compensation. I figure if worst somes to worst this could be something to do after college, especially if you have a little over a year to spare.

Russians send Basil to space

I found article to be very interesting. Baikonur space center run by Russians sent ten gerbils to Mars to study the physiological and biological effects of a long-term flight. They are doing this in order to blaze the way for a possible human mission. The rocket carrying these rodents was a Foton-M spaceship. Will they survive, who knows, but I think this is a job for Basil the great mouse detective.


www.MarsNews.com

Mars Pregnancy Test

The European Space Agency is testing a new experiment that is similar to a pregnancy test. This experiment called the "Life marker Chip" is about the size of a postage stamp and was launched last week aboard a Russian rocket. The life marker chip has more than "2,000 life detecting samples that glow if they encounter life-critical compounds, such as proteins or DNA." The experiment works like a pregnancy test, "which uses color-changing chemicals to pick up traces of hormones found in greater numbers after conception." Scientists will examine the LMC's samples once it returns to Earth on Sept. 25 near the Russia-Kazakhstan border. The European Space Agency is testing this chip to see if it will be able to survive the harsh conditions of space it will encounter on a trip to Mars. If the experiment is a success, hopefully the "life Marker Chip" will be able to be attached to the European Space Agency's "ExoMars" robotic rover mission, planned for launch in 2013.

A Giant Leap: Robots or Astronauts?

A professor of physics at the University of Maryland by the name of Bob Park, believes that using telerobots for space exploration is a better solution then sending humans. Telerobots are controlled from the ground by humans and are a better use of resources according to Park. He believes that sending more astronauts to Mars is an enormous waste of money, and when astronauts do arrive on Mars, there isn't much they can do locked in space suits. The only sense available to astronauts is sight and he believes we can build robots with much better eyes then humans.

So, do we send men to Mars or robots (which we are already doing)? According to Park, "Sense of adventure is the only thing going for manned space travel, but it is time to have a grown-up attitude to adventure. If you want adventure, go bungee jumping." And, because of programs like Google Sky, people can still experience the thrill of watching space exploration from their computer via virtual telescopes, without NASA having to send astronauts to Mars and beyond. Using robots and telescopes are not necessarily exciting and mind-boggling, but it is a better value for money.

Cost Does Not Stand in NASA's Way: Mars Program Back on Track

In June of 2007 the Mars science Laboratory completed its Critical Design Review (CDR). This means that the project is ready to move from the design department into the building department. The problem is that with all of the new design features the project is expected to exceed its $1.7 billion dollar budget by $75 million dollars. 

 

This mission is part of NASA's long-term effort to determine if Mars can support microbial life. The rover is expected to have the largest and most advanced set of scientific instruments ever sent to the surface of Mars. 

 

Luckily, due to the incredible thriftiness of NASA, they were able to trim the projects budget without compromising any of the scientific tools and team. In order to save over $75 million dollars they just cut down on complexity and spare parts.

 

Not to doubt the intelligence of NASA but it must make every taxpayer a little hesitant when they hear that NASA is cutting out spare parts on a $1.7 billion dollar Mars rover. Lets just hope that nothing malfunctions! If you want more information on this story you can read about it on Mars today by clicking here. 

Mice and men: space gerbils blaze trail for humans to Mars

Ten gerbils took off from the Russian-run Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan on Friday for a 12-day voyage to test the possible effects of a human mission to Mars. The rocket is to include a cage with 10 rodents with the aim of studying the physiological and biological effects of long-term flights. The small mammals, related to rats and mice and often used as pets by children will be kept in cages containing cereals, nuts and dry grapes. Special equipment will be used to clean their excrement in the weightless conditions.

China Details Mars Exploration with Russia

China and Russia have joined forces in exploring mars and one of its moons in 2009. Hu Jintao, the Chinese president visited Moscow to sign an agreement between China and Russia. This agreement will increase cooperation between the two countries as well as enhance technology and exploration, in hopes of competing with the United States, which currently takes the lead. The plan is to launch a Russian Rocket lifting a Chinese satellite and Russian exploration vehicle to survey Mars and one of its moons phobos. This collaboration of a large space program will expand new technologies and discover new features in Mars and moons. Russia still holds more experience than China in terms of exploration. However China's wealth and technology increases combined with Russia's experience will prove difficult for the United States to keep up with exploration progress.