Long duration mission support operations concepts

It is suggested that the system operations will be one of the most expensive parts of the Mars mission, and that, in order to reduce their cost, they should be considered during the conceptual phase of the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI) program. System operations of Space Station Freedom, Lunar outpost, and Mars Rover Sample Return are examined in order to develop a similar concept for the manned Mars mission. Factors that have to be taken into account include: (1) psychological stresses caused by long periods of isolation; (2) the effects of boredom; (3) the necessity of onboard training to maintain a high level of crew skills; and (4) the 40-min time delays between issuing and receiving a command, which make real-time flight control inoperative and require long-term decisions to be made by the ground support.