Are we there yet? - to Mars.

[flux_29]

If a fully stocked, long term, manned mission to Mars was lanch in the next 20 years; how long would it take them to reach Mars?

 

[YellowSubmarine]

Phoenix reached Mars in less than a year (9-10 months). A spacecraft carrying people would have to be much more massive, and the mission would have to be a lot safer. I don't if these affect the travel time. Probably not by much, because every document I find discussing the issue mentions about 3 year mission, which is about right with an year of stay on Mars.

The travel time might get improved within 10-20 years. Also it might be important to cut down mission and/or travel time to the shortest possible to minimize radiation exposure. Though unless they live underground they'll have the same radiation problem while they are on Mars, it still sounds like an incentive to go faster. And who knows, the already massive spacecraft might make it feasible to have some kind of propulsion during the trip itself to speed things up.

I'm betting on 5 months.

 

[Owain Taggart]

I'd read Mars by Ben Bova, because I feel it successfully captured what would be a realistic manned mission to Mars.

 

[Silvercrest]

I told you to go before we left. You'll just have to hold it.

 

[sojourner]

Travel time really depends on propulsion technology. Chemical engines? 7 to 12 months is the usual time listed. VASIMR? Down to 3 months I have read. Nuclear thermal and more exotic? gets us under 3 months. This is one way travel time of course. Trip duration also assumes optimal launch times in regards to Earth-Mars orbital mechanics.

 

[Trekker4747]

I've always heard any mission to Mars would last almost four years. This includes the nearly 10 month trip times bot to Mars and from it and the time on the planet to wait for the orbits to line-back up for an optimal return trajectory.

 

[sojourner]

I was stating one way travel time. Mission time is another story.