US mulls Mars trip

CONGRESS has Mars in its eyes. In the wake of a hearing last week, the US House Committee on Science, Space and Technology has asked NASA to consider a crewed fly-by of the Red Planet in 2021. The venture’s funding and feasibility remain vague, however. The proposal is built on plans for a privately funded fly-by laid out by Inspiration Mars,  a non-profit endeavour formed by multimillionaire Dennis Tito. Barely a year after Inspiration Mars was announced, Tito went before Congress hat in hand, saying the flight wouldn’t be possible without the use of NASA’s next-generation rocket and space capsule, both still in development. He made the case for a NASA-led fly-by of Mars and Venus in 2021, which he argued would cost less than $1 billion. Congress seems to be taking the idea seriously. On 27 February, an independent panel testified on what it would take to make the mission a reality. The response was mostly positive, but some committee members raised concerns about the tight timeline and uncertain budget. Afterwards, committee chair Lamar Smith sent a letter to NASA administrator Charles Bolden that includes a request for a technical and cost analysis.