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ISRU Technologies for Mars Life SupportThe primary objectives of the Mars Exploration program are to collect data for planetary science in a quest to answer questions related to Origins, to search for evidence of extinct and extant life, and to expand the human presence in the solar system. The public and political engagement that is critical for support of a Mars exploration program is based on all of these objectives. In order to retain and to build public and political support, it is important for NASA to have an integrated Mars exploration plan, not separate robotic and human plans that exist in parallel or in sequence. The resolution stemming from the current architectural review and prioritization of payloads may be pivotal in determining whether NASA will have such a unified plan and retain public support. There are several potential scientific and technological links between the robotic-only missions that have been flown and planned to date, and the robotic + human missions that will come in the future. Taking advantage of and leveraging those links are central to the idea of a unified Mars exploration plan. One such link is in situ resource utilization (ISRU) as an enabling technology to provide consumables such as fuels, oxygen, sweep and utility gases from the Mars atmosphere. ISRU for propellant production and for generation of life support consumables is a key element of human exploration mission plans because of the tremendous savings that can be realized in terms of launch costs and reduction in overall risk to the mission. The Human Exploration and Development of Space (HEDS) Enterprise has supported ISRU technology development for several years, and is funding the MIP and PROMISE payloads that will serve as the first demonstrations of ISRU technology for Mars. In our discussion and presentation at the workshop, we will highlight how the PROMISE ISRU experiment that has been selected by HEDS for a future Mars flight opportunity can extend and enhance the science experiments on board.
Document ID
20010082934
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Preprint (Draft being sent to journal)
Authors
Finn, John E.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA United States)
Sridhar, K. R.
(Arizona Univ. AZ United States)
Date Acquired
August 20, 2013
Publication Date
January 3, 2000
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Meeting Information
Meeting: Concepts and Approaches for the Robotic Exploration of Mars
Location: Houston, TX
Country: United States
Start Date: July 18, 2000
End Date: July 20, 2000
Funding Number(s)
PROJECT: RTOP 131-20-10
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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