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The exact duration of a flight to Mars cannot be specified. The relative position of Earth and Mars and the route influence the duration of the journey.
Flight to Mars: This is how long you can expect it to take
The duration of a flight to Mars depends on various factors. One important factor is that Mars is a moving target. There have already been several unmanned missions to Mars, but manned flights are now also becoming increasingly likely.
- Currently, a flight to Mars takes about 260 days – not even a whole year. Theoretically, a static Mars could be reached in 39 days. However, the correct angle must be achieved at launch, otherwise the planet will be missed.
- For everything to work out, both Mars and Earth would have to be in the right position, which is only the case every 26 months. This is because Earth and Mars move at different speeds. The maximum proximity of the two planets is 54.6 million kilometers.
- In addition, improved technologies and more powerful ships would shorten the duration. In the future, photonic propulsion systems, among other things, could make a flight to Mars possible in just a few days.
- The American probe “Mariner 4” was the first probe to reach Mars in 1964, taking only 228 days. “Viking 1” and “Viking 2” took 304 and 333 days. The probe named Curiosity reached the red planet after 254 days.
- If it were possible to travel at the speed of light, a flight to Mars would take between 3 and 22.4 minutes. However, it is questionable whether this will ever happen.
Planned Mars missions
According to NASA, manned trips to Mars will most likely take place at the earliest in the late 2030s. These should then be carried out using the so-called “Deep Space Transport System,” which will take a six-person crew from lunar orbit to Mars. But NASA is not the only organization researching Mars projects.
- Elon Musk’s private space company SpaceX wants to reach Mars even earlier. Gwynne Shotwell, president of SpaceX, believes a manned flight is possible as early as 2029. SpaceX has been planning a manned mission to Mars since 2016.
- The Russian space agency Roskosmos is working on concepts that will also enable manned trips to Mars. Together with the ESA, the Mars-500 test simulation was carried out in 2010, in which people lived in hermetically sealed modules for 520 days. Work is also underway on technologies to shorten the duration of the journey to 4 to 6 weeks.
- China is working on a concept in which a modular spacecraft is assembled in low Earth orbit. The flight to Mars will then use a nuclear thermal propulsion system with liquid hydrogen as a support mass, which is still to be developed.
- Indian President Kalam announced plans for a manned mission to Mars in 2004, shortly after close cooperation between India and the US. A US-Indian crew was to be sent to Mars by 2050. Kalam had previously been responsible for the development of Indian rocket programs.
Risks of a trip to Mars
However, manned flights to Mars can also involve considerable risks. Such a long journey far from Earth does not only entail technical problems. A flight to Mars can place enormous strain on physical and mental health.
- The duration of a manned mission to Mars should not exceed four years, as beyond that, the radiation exposure from cosmic rays and solar storms could become dangerous to health.
- In addition, there is very fine dust there that remains in the lungs and enters the bloodstream from there. This can ultimately lead to lung disease. The perchlorates contained in the Martian soil are also harmful to health, as they cause thyroid dysfunction and aplastic anemia, in which the body no longer produces enough blood cells.
- The fine dust can also interfere with technology. It settles on surfaces and renders machines inoperable.
- If there is an entire crew on board, the total weight increases. More ballast also means more fuel is needed to launch the spacecraft. The higher fuel requirement poses additional risks, such as the storage of large quantities of highly flammable or toxic substances.
- Ultimately, mental health is also a serious risk. Such a long journey without contact with friends and family can trigger feelings of loneliness, which in the worst case can lead to depression.
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