Extending humanity to other worlds in the Solar System is at the very limits of our modern technology. And unless there are dramatic discoveries in new propulsion systems or we learn how to build everything out of carbon nanotubes, the future of space exploration is going to require living off the land.
The technique is known as In-Situ Resource Utilization or ISRU, and it means supplying as much of your mission from local resources as possible.
And many of our future exploration destinations, like Mars, have a lot to work with. Let’s look at the raw materials on Mars that missions can use to live off the land and the techniques and technologies that will need to be developed to make this possible.
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References:
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20160005963.pdf
https://space.nss.org/the-promise-of-mars-by-robert-zubrin/
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=7038
https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/msa/ammin/article/103/7/1011/537180/gypsum-bassanite-and-anhydrite-at-gale-crater-mars
https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/jarosite-in-the-noctis-labyrinthus-region-of-mars
http://fti.neep.wisc.edu/neep533/SPRING2004/lecture19.pdf
https://www.nature.com/articles/ngeo1923
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/242525435_Perchlorate_on_Mars_A_chemical_hazard_and_a_resource_for_humans
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/curiosity-finds-evidence-of-mars-crust-contributing-to-atmosphere/
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/8200/boron-sodium-and-chlorine-in-mineral-vein-diyogha/
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=6544
https://mars.nasa.gov/mars-exploration/missions/viking-1-2/
https://www.nasa.gov/jpl/msl/pia18387
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20110015862.pdf
https://phys.org/news/2019-04-methane-route-storage-renewable-energy.html
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/9159/213d6ad79bd800d07525bc37463588742662.pdf
https://www.icis.com/explore/resources/news/2007/11/05/9075777/ethylene-uses-and-market-data
https://www.universetoday.com/144136/using-bacteria-to-build-a-base-on-mars/
https://madeinspace.us/press-releases/made-in-space-wins-nasa-contract-to-develop-hybrid-metal-manufacturing-system-for-space-exploration/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gfS5k8juDM
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-01157-w??utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=commission_junction&utm_campaign=3_nsn6445_deeplink_PID7596969&utm_content=deeplink
https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lunarisru2019/presentations/5066_Mueller.pdf
https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/centennial_challenges/3DPHab/latest-updates-from-nasa-on-3d-printed-habitat-competition
Support Universe Today podcasts with Fraser Cain
Hi Nancy,
We’re still waiting to be able to read our comments. Hopefully soon?
NASA’s video about solar flares and coronal mass ejections was interesting. However, playing it for my 12 year old grandson I found I needed to interrupt it frequently so that he could absorb what they were trying to say. There wasn’t even time to read the captions. The video goes way, way too fast and, I am sorry to say, is all too typical of NASA’s “productions” – that is, lacking in one or more *major* ways and thus failing to carry the message efficiently or even well.
For instance: How much did they speed up the CME’s? Those things take much longer than they showed or indicated or even tried to convey. Why must this information go missing?
For instance: A college undergrad lecture on the subject would easily run a full hour. Why does NASA feel they have to compress that so much?
I’m sorry to spout here on *your* blog but this is something that has been bugging me for a long time.
I wonder how others feel about it.
Respectfully,
Pete
Retired engineer, scientist, and administrator.
Hey Pete… Indeed, the loss of the comments section is a bummer. I clicked on my profile and went into my Dashboard. Under the ‘comments’ section, you can still see posts made. The problem is, that they aren’t entirely connected to the content of the page.. dzzzzz. Hope they fix it…