Could you handle a trip to mars?

[grooble]

Whoever ends up going to Mars is going to need balls of steel. When i think of the crew being alone in the middle of the abyss of space for six months, with so much that can go wrong, i feel a sense of dread. I certainly couldn't make a journey like that.<br /><br />Could you?

 

[nacnud]

Maybe, but that is a looong time without beer!<br /><br />Long distance yacht crews manage similar risks and time scales, I think the key would be making sure there were things to do.<br />

 

[tap_sa]

In some rushed up mission configuration where either everything works or you are dead, no.<br /><br />In well thought configuration (flotilla, lots and lots of backups) and good company, hell yea.

 

[najab]

I could, but my wife wouldn't let me! <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" />

 

[cuddlyrocket]

"...but that is a looong time without beer!"<br /><br />And probably without sex (unless it's a French-led mission). <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" />

 

[no_way]

"Could you?" I believe so, and i say this with reasonable degree of confidence, judging by previous somewhat relevant experiences . But, i would like to visit moon much more. BTW, i would consider a six-month trip in constrained space a blessing. As one basically doesnt have anything else to do, i would take massive amounts of digital literature ( no payload penalty <img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> , terabytes weigh next to nothing ) with me and dedicate most of the time for educating myself on various topics, for which i never find time on earth.

 

[dobbins]

Make that 6 months going there, an extended time on Mars waiting for the return launch window, and 6 months return time, over two years.<br /><br />I wouldn't do it in some hair brained Mars first mission, and I wouldn't be given the chance in a proper mission because that is at least 20 years away and I doubt they will be looking for astronauts who are over 70 years old.<br /><br />

 

[spacefire]

I would do it in a decent spaceship that takes less than 6 months to get there, powered by a nuclear thermal rocket engine.<br />You will need some sort of radiation shielding regardless, so if you put that between the reactor and the crew module, you can also use it in the event of a solar flare by pointing the rear of the ship towards the sun <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>http://asteroid-invasion.blogspot.com</p><p>http://www.solvengineer.com/asteroid-invasion.html </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[nacnud]

<font color="yellow">And probably without sex (unless it's a French-led mission). <br /><br /><font color="white">Thats was NASA would like you to think... if two like minded people were up there then who knows?</font></font>

 

[spacefire]

wait, I thought NASA neuters their astronauts? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>http://asteroid-invasion.blogspot.com</p><p>http://www.solvengineer.com/asteroid-invasion.html </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[kdavis007]

Yes.....

 

[lampblack]

<font color="red">Whoever ends up going to Mars is going to need balls of steel. When i think of the crew being alone in the middle of the abyss of space for six months, with so much that can go wrong, i feel a sense of dread. I certainly couldn't make a journey like that. <br /><br />Could you?</font><br /><br />The first explorers of the Americas did essentially the same thing -- except they knew way less about what to expect than astronauts would going to Mars. They sailed off into the unknown, without any actual sense of how far they'd have to go to get there -- wherever *there* happened to be.<br /><br />If I got the offer to catch a ride on the first Mars ship, I'd need a week to hug my family goodbye. After that, I'd be ready to fly. An odd attitude, really, given that I normally don't want to get any higher off the ground than my own two legs can propel me.<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#0000ff"><strong>Just tell the truth and let the chips fall...</strong></font> </div>

 

[scottb50]

Why can't you have beer? It probably recycles better than any other product. The spent grains are great for bread, the, uh, main by-product is pretty soluble in water.<br /><br />I would think it would be a required item. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[dobbins]

As long as it isn't that awful swill that most Americans mistake for beer. Space food is bad enough without subjecting astronauts to that!<br /><br />I wonder if coffee will grow on the Moon and Mars?<br /><br />

 

[tap_sa]

The japanese invented additives that turn poo into food, maybe they can come up with something that turns urine into beer... The color already matches! <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" />

 

[spacester]

Well obviously the beer issue is critical. For me everything depends on that.<br /><br /><img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /><br /><br />With the beer situation under control, my answer is exactly, 100%, word for word, verbatim, complete and identical to no_way's. Kinda spooky, actually.<br /><br />Now then, back to the beer. I'm going to reveal a secret. My true purpose in life is to be the first guy to make beer in space. The rest is window dressing. <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /> <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /> I'll be bringing a brewery and malt and hops and yeast and I've got it covered. Just so y'all know. The Mars crew clearly needs a brewer and I'm the guy for the job. <br /><br />So Dobbins, what's your favorite beer style? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[dobbins]

A good pilsner, like Dinkelaker, though my real love is good coffee.<br />

 

[tap_sa]

<font color="yellow">"The Mars crew clearly needs a brewer and I'm the guy for the job. "</font><br /><br />Spacester: Hey crew, I've got bad news and good news!<br /><br />Rest of the Mars crew: ???<br /><br />Spacester: The bad news is that my experiment seems to have overtaxed our CO2 scrubbers. We'll run out of air two weeks before we reach Mars.<br /><br />Crew: OMG! What's the good news?<br /><br />Spaceter: I've made <i>lots</i> of excellent beer! <br /><br />Crew: Hooray!

 

[spacester]

ROTFLMAO<br /><br />Life or Great Beer: seems like a reasonable tradeoff to me, especially if I can pull off a nice crisp Pilsner. I’ll need the Saaz hops of course, but the water better be pure, and you know that the lighter beers are harder because there’re no heavy flavors to mask any mistakes.<br /><br />I’m not sure how to brew in microgravity yet. So now y’all know why I’m so much in favor of spin-g spaceships. <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /><br /><br />Dinkel Acker, I’d heard of it but I had to look it up. Ah, Spaten brewery, Munich, of course! I bet it’s a great beer. I remember drinking Spaten Optimator – a dopplebock, almost a barley wine, really – back in the 80’s. I wonder if they still make that, it was awesome.<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[tap_sa]

On a semiserious sidenote considering making beverages possibly on your lunar farm: Imagine what the first bottles might fetch if sold on Earth? Luna Pilsner, brewed into asteroidial water from the depths of eternal darkness. Or perhaps winemaking at the farm. Collectors pay ridiculuous amounts of money for some special terrestial vintages, first extraterrestial vintages may cost ridiculuous plus then some, making small scale export even profitable.

 

[spacester]

Darn It!<br /><br />You have deduced my business plan!<br /><br />Seriously. I first had that idea 4 years ago. Asteroid water and everything. There's a chance I was the first to think of it. Prolly not, there's very few new ideas in space actually. <br /><br />But I declared 'dibs' on space brewing a long time ago pal, back off! <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /><br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[tap_sa]

You can have the brewery business... I'll ship some sturgeon to Moon and export LunaCaviar <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" />

 

[spacester]

You have a deal Sir.<br /><br />The drinks are on me when we arrive. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[scottb50]

Some beers depend on gravity, it's not that simple. You have top fermenting yeast and bottom fermenting yeasts. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[spacester]

Ah, our old friends Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Saccharomyces uvarum, yes. They're both along for the ride to Mars if you make me your brewer. lol <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>