in just 24 hours
humanity will begin its greatest
adventure the establishment of an
outpost on the red planet Mars now
humans will finally journey to another
planet a planet where life once may have
existed the planet our ancestors named
for the God of War it's taken us a long
time to get to this historic day but we
won't be the planets first visitors
robots originally explored the red
planet during the Mariner program in the
1960s Mariner 9 of that series
discovered four majestic volcanoes the
tallest Olympus Mons is the largest
volcano in the entire solar system
Mariner 9 also found an enormous canyon
system now called Valles Marineris these
canyons are more than three times as
deep as the Grand Canyon and as long as
the United States is wide the Mariner
spacecraft also photographed giant dust
storms polar ice caps and river channels
channels which once were cut by running
water robotic Landers followed during
the next decade and led to a spectacular
first look at the Martian surface on
July 20th 1976 that's when the Viking
one Lander separated from its companion
orbiter and began its descent to the
western edge of crisi kinesia the plain
of gold near the edge of an ancient
Channel where water once flowed millions
of people shared the first images with
excited scientists at the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena California
catalyzing ly n sliver electric yep yep
that's it that's it you rocks oh that's
beautiful
it may not look like much
oh oh oh yeah I'm supposed to say
something at this point I'm just I just
I just don't feel like talking uh well
there are rock there are rocks yes
there's rocks and there's none of it but
they it's just oh it's just incredible
to see that the marzio is really there
over 20 years would pass before we'd
make our return to Mars but when we did
we did so with a vengeance starting in
the late 1990s orbiters Landers and
sample return missions have studied the
planet intensively we've sent one or two
spacecraft every 26 months to
investigate how the planet's geology and
climate have changed over time we've
also searched for evidence of present or
past life on Mars a prospect that has
captured the imagination of humankind
for ages as the Landers were studying
the surface of Mars scientists began
analyzing a group of unusual meteorites
discovered on earth and what a surprise
they found they discovered that trapped
gas within these rocks has the same
chemistry as the Martian atmosphere as
measured by the Viking landers the
scientists then concluded that these
meteorites must have come from Mars so
how did they get to earth well millions
of years ago giant impacts blasted these
rocks from Mars and into the inner solar
system eventually a few reached Earth's
surface as meteorites inside some of
these Martian meteorites scientists
found fascinating evidence of possible
ancient life-forms visible only with the
most powerful microscopes this ongoing
search for past or even present Martian
life is the major research focus of the
crew who will lift off tomorrow the crew
of Antares the Antares mission actually
began two years ago with a launch of
three support spacecraft Antares one is
a fully fueled earth return vehicle
currently in orbit around Mars
Antares one is ready to bring our
astronauts
home in two years Antares two is the
ascent vehicle which will ferry the
astronauts from Mars to the return
vehicle it is already in place at the
crews landing site its power plant is in
good working order and has been
producing fuel for the crews liftoff
from Mars it's also producing extra
oxygen for the astronauts to breathe
Antares three includes the laboratory
where the crew will live and work and
the rover which will transport the
scientists as they explore the planet
the lab and rover are ready and waiting
for the arrival of our astronauts to
prepare for their journey to the Red
Planet the Antares crew has trained
together on the International Space
Station practicing every maneuver and
rehearsing every emergency as a well
coordinated team an Earth to Mars
communication delay of up to 20 minutes
increases the need for self-sufficiency
training for long-duration spaceflight
was a major focus of the Russian space
station Mir and pioneering astronauts
like Shannon lucid dr. lucid six months
on Mir equals the same time period our
astronauts will spend in transit each
way to and from Mars
we are proud to introduce the men and
women who will walk on Mars our
commander has primary responsibility for
all spacecraft systems in transit and on
Mars our pilot is in charge of vehicle
dynamics in space and rover operations
on the Martian surface our geologist is
a veteran astronaut who has been
analyzing rocks and soils from Mars for
over a decade for the last 10 years our
mechanical engineer has maintained life
support systems and as control robots in
that arctica and on Mars our flight
surgeon is responsible for crew health
and is an expert in performing surgical
procedures in microgravity our life
scientists will focus on the collection
of samples that could provide evidence
of past or present life on Mars these
astronauts will be on their own more
than any astronauts in history as they
leave the cradle of planet Earth to step
out onto a new world launch pad a May 11
2008 een t-minus 30 seconds and counting
for the launch of Antares for the first
human mission to another planet whether
downrange is calm and clear
fuel pressure nominal the gantry has
been retracted we are go for launch
t-minus 10 and Counting eight seven main
stage ignition four
we have liftoff Antares for on its
two-year mission to the planet bar
this is Mission Control Houston
confirming or thwarted Antares for you
are clear for trans-mars injection and a
rendezvous with destiny on the Red
Planet see you back here in two and a
half earth years farewell and best
wishes on your home planet Earth
commanders briefing may 2018 in our last
real time broadcast from the flight deck
of Antares for we'd like to explain
where we're going for the next 30 months
for now Mars is just a tiny speck over a
hundred million kilometers away but in
six months we must land in an area just
two kilometers wide
this is navigation at its finest and
most dangerous we have already left
Earth orbit on a gradual curving path as
shown here and in six months we will
ease into a Martian orbit once we reach
Mars it will be almost 18 full months
until Mars and Earth come into alignment
again so we can start home and then we
will ease out of Mars orbit allow the
faster orbiting Earth to catch up with
us our trip will be 200 days each way
with 550 days spent on the surface of
Mars this fast transit minimizes the
health risks during the flight and
maximizes our research time on Mars
geologists log November 2018
for the last two months we've watched
Mars grow larger and strain to see each
new feature recently the planets white
polar caps and two small moons have come
into view as we get closer I can almost
make out the equatorial canyons of the
Valles Marineris and the four great
volcanoes of Tharsis plateau after six
months and Crampton can it's wonderful
to see a planet surface again we're all
suffering cabin fever humans definitely
need their space even in space soon
we're going to land in the oldest region
of the planet we are aiming for dhow
Valles the valley of the star northeast
of the Hellas Planitia floods of water
carved this valley over a billion years
ago a nearby volcano had Ryoka Patera
probably created the canyon by melting
underground ice a combination of water
and heat have made a Valles a place of
great interest to both geologists and
biologists this is one of the best
locations on Mars to search for signs of
ancient life commanders report November
2018 we're on our way down and ready to
receive telemetry from the robot Rover
below us on a valley floor
and robot should be focused on that
point misguide where worst is going to
be
the robots pictures are coming through
and golly we're right on target that
homing beacon on a valley floor is
sending us its signals
our goal is to touch down just one
kilometer from the Antares Freelander
already on the ground is down
everything everywhere we looked at
varying shades of red from dark gorgeous
to rusty Brown and those canyon walls
that we saw in the photography are now
rising above us in the distance now
valise is waiting and we're on our way
it's a homecoming to a place that we
have never been
touchdown Houston this is da valise and
Therese for has landed in another eight
minutes traveling at the speed of light
that news will reach Mission Control in
Houston flight scientists log December
2018 page readout complete see it's
clear go for ETA my feet touched the
bottom rung of the short ladder and the
Martian soil below the words of Neil
Armstrong echo in my mind as I repeat
the words we have all agreed to say this
is the second giant leap for all
humanity another small step toward our
destiny in space I am standing in the
dust of Dallas millions of kilometers
from my home on earth I try to imagine
Mars as a world where life once
flourished with a warmer climate and
more abundant water this valley was
carved by running water like valleys
back on earth but this is like no place
on earth no plants fill the spaces
between the rocks no insects crawl on
the dusty sand beneath my feet
none of our machines have been able to
answer the question we have come here to
resolve did life once exist here we will
collect samples and search for fossil
evidence of ancient life we may even
find living microbes that have endured
for millions of years a remote
possibility but one that excites me most
of all
I grew up fascinated by the possibility
of life in the universe so I'll never
forget the day in elementary school when
I saw a planetarium show simulating a
trip to Mars our teacher told us that
the first astronauts on Mars would be
our age I was determined to be on board
I wanted to be there and now I am I
wonder if my teacher is watching for now
I am simply amazed to be here in
astronomy you learn about nebula stars
and planets to distant touch but now
here I am touching another world
engineer meteorologist report January
2019 my job as engineers make sure the
mechanics of the mission work properly
our lives will depend on it our first
priority on Mars is to link the on
tourists for lander to the lab already
on the surface both modules have wheels
we will simply drive them into place and
connect the airlocks over there is our
propellant plant it's been in operation
for over two years now combining carbon
dioxide from the air with hydrogen to
produce water and methane we can then
extract oxygen from the water and we
will use both methane and oxygen to fuel
our essence stage when we leave Mars
that new surface slab contains a large
storage area with waste management and
air recycling on one level and a second
level for science and research labs
as we use up supplies the extra storage
area will also be used as a greenhouse
eventually we hope this greenhouse will
produce about 10% of our food real fresh
vegetables after months of prepackaged
meals surgeons log February 2019 the
crew has dealt well with the transition
to Mars gravity our in-flight exercise
seems to have paid off my main concern
right now is radiation beyond Earth's
protective magnetic field atmosphere
ozone layer and Van Allen belts we can
be exposed to dangerously high radiation
levels from the Sun and from galactic
cosmic rays neither our spaceship nor
the Martian atmosphere can fully
compensate radiation wrist monitors must
be worn at all times during the mission
engineer meteorologists log March 2019
we have begun to notice differences in
our Valley with the cunning of winter
each winter day we wake up to
temperatures hovering around 100 degrees
below and begin our work thankful that
we are not outside The Sun heats the
thin Martian atmosphere quickly so
temperatures climb rapidly once the Sun
comes up by the early afternoon it may
reach 50 degrees below zero out there
every winter is long and cold at Dow
Wallace pilots log May 2019 after almost
three really cold months the temperature
is slowly rising this is my first night
outside in several weeks with frost on
the ground the dust levels are low and
the sky above is crystal clear look
overhead there's our namesake and
Terry's just to the south of the zenith
and marking the heart of the starry
scorpion the faint outline of the
constellation Scorpius looks upside down
to me because I grew up in Earth's
northern hemisphere even more unusual
than an upside-down scorpion is a night
sky with two moons Deimos is smaller and
more distant Phobos is a closer larger
and more fascinating moon it shines 40
times more brightly than Deimos and is
close enough for us to see its oval
shape Phobos is so close to Mars that it
completes an orbit in under 8 hours so
the speedy Phobos rises in the West and
sets in the east as it races through the
star field
perhaps the most unusual object in the
Martian night sky is birth its
appearance always catches us by surprise
it's almost as bright as Venus from
Earth and blue I have always enjoyed
watching a habit I picked up on the
space station but I never thought our
planet would look so beautiful from Mars
this is Mission Control Houston as part
of the celebration we have a message
recorded on a cd-rom by the Planetary
Society in 1994 the noted planetary
scientist the late Carl Sagan looked
forward to your landing
these are his thoughts taken directly
from the old recording I don't know why
you're on Mars maybe we're on Mars
because of the magnificent science that
could be done there that the gates of
the wonder world are opening in our time
or maybe we're on Mars because we have
to be because there is a deep pneumatic
impulse
built into us by the evolutionary
process we come after all from under
gatherers and for 99.9 percent about
tenure on earth we've been Wanderers and
the next place to wander to is Mars but
whatever the reason you're on Mars is
I'm glad you're there and I wish I was
with you surgeons log September 2019 we
ate homegrown Tomatoes today and the
taste was out of this world as spring
thaws our Rocky red home we congregate
more and more in our greenhouse the
plants help us forget the temperatures
still hover well below zero just outside
our windows the use of local resources
also makes us feel as if we're really
living off the land there is genuine
excitement and pride associated with
finding water extracting oxygen from the
air and making these tomatoes grow on
Mars
the food we grow and water we find will
also increase the food supply for future
missions geologists log October 2019
each day we set out with our geological
tools to collect rocks and soils bit by
bit we are piecing together the history
of our part of Mars the robot explorers
that came to this valley before us even
returned a few kilograms of rock and
soil but we humans can spot the unique
rocks the rare but important samples the
rocks we were looking for were formed by
heat and water and are reminiscent of a
very special place on distant earth
Yellowstone in that beautiful park heat
from deep underground makes the water
boil into geysers bacteria with unique
adaptations thrive in these hot mineral
rich waters where the water overflows
and cools crystals form trapping and
fossilized the living creatures
preserving evidence of ancient life this
is one of the reasons we came to Dallas
where volcanic heat and underground
water came together early in the history
of Mars we've scoured this area
searching for evidence of ancient
thermal springs on the valley floor but
those rocks are scarce here we are much
more likely to find ancient hot springs
higher up in that distinct flight layer
near the top of this cliff before we
leave this place we must find a way to
get up there maybe just maybe we can
reach it from above
life scientists log December 2019 the
more we learn about this planet the more
we realize how much it has changed it's
mostly dry and quiet now but I can
imagine a much more dynamic place where
the valleys flowed with sudden gigantic
floods of water as volcanic heat melt
and vast areas of ice was the atmosphere
thicker back then making the climate
hotter I wonder if it rained I bet it
did all that water most of it gone now
lost a space water that sustains life on
earth I'm frustrated that we have yet to
find the samples that will tell us of
life here on Mars I'm not giving up
geologists log January 2020 to explore
Mars thoroughly we must take trips
lasting several days our pressurized
Rover provides a range up to 500
kilometers on this trip we're going to
head rocket Patera the volcano just
north of our outpost our Rover makes
good progress on the gentle slopes at
every stop we collect samples of ash a
product of some of the oldest explosive
volcanism on Mars I'm glad we were here
to identify and collect these samples
it's good to have humans in the loop to
make decisions we are honored to be here
I just survived a silly accident at the
last stop and outcrop that looked solid
broke away and I took a long fall thanks
to the low Martian gravity
I only suffered a bad sprain and some
minor damage to my spacesuit the
accident creates a serious problem
though on our way back from Hydra akka I
wanted to try sampling that intriguing
light deposit high on the cliff face our
time on Mars is growing short and this
may be our only chance so we can't wait
I really wanted to do the rock sampling
myself but I trust my fellow crew mate
to do the job this could be it the
sample we came so far to find I'm not
the geologist here but I know I'm
looking at some really old rock is this
layer one of those thermal springs where
life could have existed on Mars look at
this rock houston what are all these
tiny round things
pay attention Earth I could be holding
proof that we haven't always been alone
engineer meteorologist law March 2020
these are the warmest days of the year
each day we have a temperature swing of
over a hundred degrees and that murder
on equipment an even bigger problem for
equipment is the wind rising
temperatures in the southern hemisphere
can produce winds of hurricane speeds
from 150 to 200 km/h such strong winds
raised dust easily and can mix we're the
storms
commanders log April 2020 all around us
the dust clouds are continuing to grow
at first the sky dark in just a little
each day but now I can see and even feel
the motion of the wind
growing ever stronger from the south and
it's a pilot I have some concern
unfortunately I feel that we must leave
now
one month early or risk missing the
launch window for a return to Earth
altogether and if we miss that window we
would literally be trapped here on Mars
for two more years my crew is frustrated
by the growing storm it is with sadness
that we have to hurry and close out
Antares for we trust that the automated
systems for the greenhouse will last at
least until the Aldebaran crew arrives
the essent vehicle is fueled and it's
ready to go the computer instructions
have been transferred to the onboard
systems it's now time to take one final
reflective look out the windows and we
can see the dust storm as it increases
in intensity we're ready for liftoff
engine ignition we have liftoff from Don
valve
that's 2020 because the dust storm has
cut our stay at Dallas short we must
spend an extra month in Martian orbit in
orbit we share with Mars two tiny moons
Phobos and Deimos earth scientists have
puzzled over the origins of these two
moons they may be left over from the
formation of Mars or perhaps they were
captured from the nearby asteroid belt
Phobos and Deimos have surfaces covered
with debris from their many collisions
with meteors this loose material called
regolith may be meters deep
mineralogical exploration of both moons
seems promising oxygen and other
components might be synthesized from the
regolith and turned into fuel and
supplies for human exploration of Mars
and beyond surgeons log June 2020 after
our Phobos flyby we docked with the
Antares one the spacecraft that will
take us home
it has orbited Mars for four years
waiting to carry us back to earth I'm
looking forward to the trip home but as
I stare out the ship's window I can't
help but think about the future I wonder
who will write the first Martian poetry
design the first Martian buildings start
the first Martian families how long will
we take to make this planet a real home
not for a few years but for millennia
Mission Control Houston on July 30th
2020 the Aldebaran crew left for the dal
Valles outpost on Mars by September the
Mars dust storm had abated and the skies
over Dallas cleared in time for the
arrival of the Aldebaran mission in
February of 2021
meanwhile the Antares crew landed at
Cape Canaveral and soon returned to
active duty research and teaching
several of the entire YZ astronauts have
requested assignment as primary
instructors for the Arcturus mission
that leaves earth with Alice in
September 2022 as a new crew departs for
Mars every two years taking the place of
the crew before it we can proudly
proclaim the human habitation of Mars
has begun
you
I guess you're about the only person
around it doesn't have TV coverage of
the food I don't mind it man they got
the flag up now you can see the sudden
breakup now TV picture now kneel yes we
are getting a TV picture now
at 100 man on fire please
