vladimir putin, the current president of Russia, surprised both locals and foreigners by saying that they are preparing to conduct a Martian expedition as soon as possible, although the scientific community is somewhat skeptical about these claims. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview with VGTRK's journalist, Andrei Kondrashov.
Mars will become the next trophy in space
In the field of space exploration, Mars has become the next trophy to be conquered: Elon Musk, from SpaceX, has been showing great interest in exploring the red planet, and in the same way, NASA is preparing a probe that, according to some estimates, it will be launched next May.
Now, Russia has also climbed this little train to Mars.
In an interview with television presenter Andrei Kondrashov, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia plans to carry out manned missions to space. It is part of a program of studies on the Moon and Mars whose main objective is the search for microorganisms and signs of water, among other things.
However, the most impressive aspect of these statements is the term stipulated by Putin: he promised that the first mission to Mars would be starting in 2019.
American space force vs Russian cosmic army?
Virtually the entire scientific community has received these statements with skepticism, especially regarding technical detail. In the year 2019, Earth and Mars will be on opposite sides of the Sun.
While it is possible to launch a mission in these conditions, the amount of fuel needed to reach the destination would rise wildly.
Therefore, the most logical thing would be to wait until 2020 or, as NASA is doing, launch the mission in 2018.
Possibly Putin has confused the dates or put too much optimism in his proposal. It is important to consider that these statements were made in the framework of the elections in Russia, which took place Sunday, March 18.
Some international media have begun to suggest that these statements by Putin are a reaction to the speech offered by the president of the United States, Donald Trump, on March 13. In the speech, he officially recognized that space could become "a war domain," and that he is planning to create a Space Force that will integrate the Pentagon's air, naval and terrestrial forces.
Meanwhile, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigou revealed that he plans to set up a new network of military satellites. We will see what happens in 2019 with the promise of Vladimir Putin.
