Congress passes first NASA authorization bill in FIVE YEARS that will fund human placement on Mars
New hope boost for humans on Mars: Congress passes first authorization bill in FIVE YEARS that includes funding for Red Planet exploration
- Congress passes NASA authorization bill that would allocate funds for the Moon to Mars program
- The program requires first setting up a lunar base and then sending humans to Mars
- Both missions will use the Space Launch System and the Orion crew capsule
NASA is one step closer to putting human boots on Mars after Congress passed the first authorization bill for the American space agency in five years, which includes funding for the Artemis mission to not only continue its work to the moon but also soar to the Red Planet. .
The 1,054-page document contains the ‘National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act 2022’ which includes the ‘Moon to Mars Program’ section which must be enacted 120 days after the law takes effect.
This includes implementing processes to ensure lunar bases and orbital posts are built, space suits are created and designs for human habitats on Mars are being worked on. However, the bill does not specify the exact amount of funds that will be given to NASA to make it happen.
The last time Congress passed funding for NASA was in 2017, which came with the NASA Transition Authorization Act. The American space agency received $19.5 billion in funding, with most of it set for public-private partnerships with commercial spaceflight companies, and to begin preparing for a trip to Mars.
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NASA is going to Mars: Congress passes bill that would give America’s space agency the funds to put humans on the Red Planet
The announcement was included in ‘Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS), which was passed by the House of Representatives by 243-187 votes July 28 and includes $52 billion to be allocated between chip-building and space exploration.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson released this statement on Thursday following approval of the act: ‘I am very pleased that Congress has passed the NASA Authorization Act of 2022 – the first authorization for our agency in five years.
‘This action demonstrates the continued bipartisan support of many NASA missions, including our Moon-to-Mars approach, as well as the extension of US participation on the International Space Station through 2030.’
The bill notes that the program will include ‘human Mars orbit missions and human missions to the surface,’ which could mean that NASA will send a group to Mars, circle it and then return to Earth before landing them on the surface.
The bill states that the space fairing heroes will launch aboard the Space Launch System and the Orion crew capsule, which will also take the first women and people of color to the moon.
The document also states that the Space Launch System and the Orion crew capsule will be used to transport humans to the Red Planet. The two planes brought the first women and people of color to the moon – this could happen by 2025.
While the bill does not specify funding for the Moon to Mars program, it does suggest it gives chipmakers a boost to compete with China.
A $52 billion grant, as well as an investment tax credit for chip factories estimated at $24 billion, will be allocated to U.S. manufacturers over the next five years.
NASA, however, is moving on with its existing Mars program which has the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter currently exploring the Martian surface.
The US space agency announced plans Wednesday to send two more mini-helicopters to Mars in 2027 to collect samples on the Red Planet to be brought back to Earth in 2033 and analyzed for signs of ancient life.
The new innovation takes inspiration from Ingenuity, which is already on Mars, but will be equipped with grappling wheels and arms to help it lift Martian rock and soil.
The samples will then be collected by the Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission which was originally set to take a second rover to the Red Planet. However, NASA rode the restrictions successfully and believed that an eye in the Martian sky would be a great addition to the search.
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