A leading cosmologist says he has figured out how to affordably mount a manned mission to Mars – make it a one-way trip.
Citing cost savings as well as reduced risk, Prof. Paul Davies made the suggestion at a gathering of NASA astrobiologists last year.
Davies envisions a first-time mission involving four astronauts. The quartet would land on Mars’ surface and immediately seek shelter, possibly inside lava tubes to avoid radiation poisoning. The first four would eventually be joined by others, establishing a permanent colony on the red planet. None of the visitors could ever return home.
He admitted that conditions might be a little Spartan, but “not as bad as Guantanamo Bay.”