NASA looking for someone to lead mission of bringing back Martian samples to Earth

NASA is looking for someone to lead the mission of bringing back Martian samples back to Earth. According to reports, the Mars Sample Return (MSR) is planned to take place over the span of next decade with a goal to collect samples of Martian rock, soil, and atmosphere for analysis and testing on Earth.

Even though NASA has already sent rovers to Mars in the past, every program and robot still remain unsuccessful in bringing back samples from the red planet which could provide new insights. According to international reports, the MSR program will be proposed in collaboration with the European Space Agency and requires a director to give it more significant shape after several years.

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Job Requirements

The job vacancy is posted on the government website of jobs in the US with closing date till February 5. The senior executive selected for the job will be entirely responsible for the implementation of all MSR program activities and even the beginning with mission formulation. All applicants will be required to have experience of spaceflight program execution to receive a payment of up to $188,066. 

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Mars Sample Return 

According to NASA's official website, it is a proposed mission to return samples from the surface of red planets to Earth by using robotic systems and a Mars ascent rocket. The samples are required in Earth for detailed chemical and physical analysis.

The red planet has already increased curiosity for the scientists as last month they created a 'treasure map' for water ice in Mars with the help of NASA orbiters. NASA also believes that according to the proposed map, future astronauts will be able to access the water by simply digging it up. A new paper was published in Geophysical Research Letters that explained the phenomenon as 'in situ resource utilization'.

"You wouldn't need a backhoe to dig up this ice. You could use a shovel," said the paper's lead author, Sylvain Piqueux of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. "We're continuing to collect data on buried ice on Mars, zeroing in on the best places for astronauts to land." 

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(With Agency Inputs)