Antarctica project could allow humans destined for Mars to 'develop capabilities'

After NASA’s Perseverance rover completed one week in the Jezero crater on Mars, scientists have started analysing images, videos and the sounds that are being sent back by the probe. NASA’s human lunar exploration plans under the Artemis programme aims at sending the first woman and next man to the surface of the Moon by 2024. However, this will require a good amount of planning. A theoretical physicist Dr Adriana Marais is hoping her Off-World Project will help in the process. 

'Develop the capability'

During a Ted Talk, she said that the next step is to ‘develop the capability‘ to explore worlds. She also talked about the documentary of the Shackleton voyage to Antarctica. She said that for her, it was a call for volunteers for the MarsOne project, the destination of which, was a huge inspiration for her. Initially, Mars was a Dutch Organization that claimed it would “land the first humans on Mars and leave them there to establish a permanent human colony”. However, in the year 2019 it was declared bankrupt. This is how she took inspiration from the timing of this plan. 

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In the year 2020, she left her job to establish a movement called Proudly Human. This was her first project or expedition. She then compares the temperatures in Antarctica to that of Mars. The scientist explained why she has selected Antarctica as a destination. She said that this is a unique location for the psychological aspects of designing a team and developing technology and research.

Perseverance Rover 

After NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover chronicles plummeted and rocketed toward the surface of Mars on February 18, a new video of the major milestone released during the final minutes of its entry, descent, and landing on the Red Planet. A microphone on the rover also provided the first audio recording of the sounds from Mars. According to the reports from NASA, the camera system covers the whole process, from the moment of parachute inflation to the descent process.

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It shows some of the rover's intense ride to Mar's Jezero Crater. The footage from the high-definition cameras aboard shows the spacecraft starts 7 miles above the surface. It also showed the supersonic deployment of the massive parachute ever sent to another planet. It ends with the rover's touchdown in the crater. 

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Also Read: Mars Colonies Of The Future May Get Energy And Oxygen From The Brine Water Of Mars