Latest Breaking News

bananas

(27,509 posts) Thu Apr 28, 2016, 12:29 AM Apr 2016

SpaceX Announces a 2018 Sample Return Mission to Mars

Source: Popular Mechanics

Originally shooting for 2022, SpaceX now wants to send a Red Dragon lander to Mars in just two years.

Last year, a research team from the NASA Ames Research Center came up with an idea to use a modified SpaceX Dragon capsule to send a sample return mission to Mars.

SpaceX responded to the idea, and the modified capsule design was dubbed the Red Dragon. A team of NASA and SpaceX engineers put a tentative timeline in place to attempt a sample return mission in 2022.

But SpaceX just tweeted an announcement that it plans to instead launch the mission in 2018.

Read more: http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a20575/spacex-announces-mars-sample-return-2018/

6 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

SpaceX Announces a 2018 Sample Return Mission to Mars (Original Post) bananas Apr 2016 OP

SpaceX Falcon Heavy - Red Dragon to Mars - 2018 bananas Apr 2016 #1

SpaceX Says It Plans to Send a Probe to Mars bananas Apr 2016 #2

NASA Watch bananas Apr 2016 #3

Awesome news Matthew28 Apr 2016 #4

I'm not clear on the hardware muriel_volestrangler Apr 2016 #5

Awesome news Duckhunter935 Apr 2016 #6

bananas

(27,509 posts)

1. SpaceX Falcon Heavy - Red Dragon to Mars - 2018

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 12:40 AM

Apr 2016

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=40165.0

bananas

(27,509 posts)

2. SpaceX Says It Plans to Send a Probe to Mars

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 12:42 AM

Apr 2016

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/04/28/science/mars-spacex-dragon-landing-2018.html

bananas

(27,509 posts)

3. NASA Watch

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 01:34 AM

Apr 2016

http://nasawatch.com/archives/2016/04/spacex-will-go.html

Matthew28

(1,798 posts)

4. Awesome news

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 04:39 AM

Apr 2016

Wish they'd focus on the moon first for a outpost as the long term plan should be to build a economy in space so we don't end up with another Apollo.

But, this is very exciting!

muriel_volestrangler

(101,316 posts)

5. I'm not clear on the hardware

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 05:43 AM

Apr 2016

Are they going to land a capsule on Mars that is fully fueled to get back to Mars orbit?

And does it then rendezvous with a rocket in Mars orbit that can send it back to Earth? The diagram has a bit marked 'Mars ascent' with a conventional-looking rocket (ie not just the lander) that seems to appear from nowhere. They seem to use their second rocket to put a capsule in earth orbit that will "rendezvous with samples" and return the samples to earth.

Oh, I see, that ascent stage is a tiny rocket hidden in the middle of the lander, and is also responsible for getting it back to earth orbit - in the design they proposed for 2022:

The researchers have drawn up a plan that uses a modified version of SpaceX's uncrewed Dragon cargo capsule, which has already flown six resupply missions to the International Space Station for NASA. The Red Dragon variant would include a robotic arm, extra fuel tanks and a central tube that houses a rocket-powered Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) and an Earth Return Vehicle (ERV).
...
The MAV would then blast off from the center of the capsule, like a missile from a silo, sending the ERV on its way back to Earth. The ERV would settle into orbit around our planet; its sample capsule would then be transferred to, and brought down to Earth by, a separate spacecraft — perhaps another Dragon capsule.

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/red-dragon-mission-bring-mars-rocks-back-earth-could-launch-n427081

That's a hell of a lot for a small rocket to do.

Duckhunter935

(16,974 posts)

6. Awesome news

Reply to bananas (Original post)

Thu Apr 28, 2016, 06:36 AM

Apr 2016

Reply to this discussion