In this way, NASA is preparing to reach the Red Planet in about 15 years.

Stepping onto the surface of Mars could be feasible as early as 2039 if forecasts from US space agency NASA are fulfilled, which plans to use the moon as a “test platform” for innovative technology and research that could help humans. Will enable them to survive on red. Planet..

The arrival of humans on Mars would be a “giant step” for humanity, but first it is necessary to return to the Moon, more than 50 years after the last Apollo mission, deploying the technology, logistics and operations that will allow NASA’s Engineer Carlos García-Galán told EFE that we must expand space exploration.

How to live on the Moon, protect yourself, work and explore its surface is part of NASA’s Artemis program, which includes several phases: The first unmanned spacecraft was launched on November 16, 2022 and in 2026 There are plans to take astronauts to the Moon. Earth’s natural satellite.

He elaborated, “This decade we will do what we need to do to get back to the Moon. In the next decade we will focus on building the infrastructure, the surface, and the Gateway space station.”

García Galán is director of the integration office of the European Service Module of the Orion spacecraft at NASA’s Glenn Research Center, and these days is participating in the ‘Small Satellites and Services International Forum (SSSIF)’ congress, which is being celebrated. Málaga (south).

It would be in the late 1930s when work would begin on systems for Mars. The Spanish engineer hopes that at the end of that decade “or the beginning of the 40s” they will “Very advanced” To be able to take that step. “I’m not working on it yet, but I definitely hope to see it,” he says.

To “speed up” this process, the aim is to combine the work of government agencies with the innovation of private companies. “Who would have thought that today there would be tourists accompanying ships orbiting the Earth and visiting the space station?” he comments, referring to SpaceX or Blue Origin flights.

On Mars, “Houston, we have a problem” is not valid

While reaching the Moon may take three or four days, and “communications are already delayed by a few seconds”, the trip to Mars may take six to nine months, and once there, communications The delay may be up to 20 minutes. Way, Garcia-Galan says.

At that distance, “if you forget something or it breaks, if the crew has a health problem you can’t afford it… you can’t react immediately, you have to have what you need there.” Should,” the engineer insisted, citing as an example the legendary phrase “Houston, we have a problem”, which will take 20 minutes to reach the ground, and to find out what it is, other It will take 20 minutes.

That’s why they say it’s important “Develop new technologies to become completely independent”Taking advantage of the information provided by nano satellites, which allows us to create maps or create communication networks on the lunar surface.

Andres Martínez, executive of the Independent Earth Operations Program at NASA, which also includes the mission, told EFE that the moon will be used as a “test platform” where humans can live, set up camps and experiment with technology. For. Robotics, precursor to communication and navigation.

Martínez is organizing experts, scientists and engineers to create a system that can autonomously solve any type of problem that may arise on Mars, so that the alarm is activated before it happens. .

The goal is to set foot on Mars in 2039, the last year of the 1930s, but “This is a challenge and depends on collaborative work with industry And coordination with the rest of the international partners, so as to “broaden” the horizons, he believes.

Sensors for survival, agriculture and biology

The research required for the long-awaited mission includes testing technology equipment and development of space agriculture and biology studies to guarantee survival and prevent damage to people’s DNA from deep space radiation.

Many experiments have been conducted on the International Space Station from which lessons have been learned. “Plants use gravity like a compass to determine where roots go.”And it’s about knowing “how much gravity is required away from Earth for a plant to germinate and grow”, he explains.

Because its objective is to create an ecosystem that allows survival in space. Astronauts will have to do this on their trip to Mars “Learn to live those 80 days” and the first concept of mission goals “Get there and stay” A little while, so they have to know “how to produce water.”

To understand the effects of being in space on living beings and to protect humans, biological experiments are conducted aboard the BioSentinel satellite in which NASA uses yeast because “its DNA changes in the same way when exposed to high doses of radiation.” reacts to,” explains Martínez.

Deploying small satellites in the Moon’s orbit will extract data that can be used in other space missions in the future. “Humans are going to be interplanetary because, by nature, we are explorers.”He claims.

The conquest of space in cinema was achieved very early on, although on many occasions visions more typical of science fiction than reality. Andres Martinez Lives Up With ‘Interstellar’ and Admits ‘Gravity’ Made Him “Laugh” because it ended more “Enthuse the general public” But this was even further away from scientific basis.