Possible Scenarios for Mars Manned Exploration

Abstract

Over the last five decades there have been numerous studies devoted to developing, launching and conducting a manned mission to Mars by both Russian and U.S. organizations. These studies have proposed various crew sizes, mission length, propulsion systems, habitation modules, and scientific goals. As a first step towards establishing an international partnership approach to a Mars mission, the most recent Russian concepts are explored and then compared to NASA's current Mars reference mission.