Want to go to Mars? Dennis Tito will take you there
…as long as you’re part of an older, married couple with amazing mechanical skills, great long term resilience, and relaxed attitude towards being exposed to high levels of radiation. A selection of tweets and thoughts about the Inspiration Mars mission, announced today.
- Today Dennis Tito and Inspiration Mars announced a 2018 crewed mission to Mars. Two people - a man and a woman - will start their journey on January 5 2018. They will return 501 days later having flown by, but not landed on, Mars. Here's how it happened:
#InspirationMars press conference started a few minutes early! Dennis Tito up now.- Plan is to send two people - a man (not Tito) and a woman - to Mars in 2018. Will say why later… #InspirationMars
A man and a woman. Going to Mars. A year and a half in a capsule. Coronal Mass Ejections are the least of their worries. #inspirationmars- While Tito was speaking a feasibility study for the mission appeared on the mission's website, and some mock ups of what the spacecraft will look like were presented.
- Paper up at #InspirationMars: Feasibility Analysis for a Manned Mars Free-Return Mission in 2018 inspirationmars.com/Inspiration%20…
Unsurprised that #InspirationMars' main crew capsule is a dead ringer for Apollo CSM! http://pic.twitter.com/d1GocKCW80- Bu first things first: money. How much will it cost? How will they finance the trip?
- "Can't come up with a number" for cost, but will be much lower than what you'd think for Mars mission, comparable to LEO. #InspirationMars
Tito: cost will be much much lower than you'd expect for a Mars mission - in the dollar range that we can raise money. #inspirationmars
Dennis Tito will help fund #InspirationMars mission for next two years - funding secured until end of 2014.- #InspirationMars to demonstrate low-cost, collaborative, nonprofit approach to achieving a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
- "NASA had amazing can do attitude when we came to them" to partner on developing tech for space exploration. #InspirationMars
- After it became obvious Tito was in fact talking about "media rights" as opposed to "meteorites", the financial reality of an inspiring Mars mission came crashing back down to Earth.
Tito: "The media rights are going to be phenomenal. I can imagine Dr. Phil talking to this couple and solving problems." #InspirationMars- Tito mentions media rights - wonder if he's planning reality show (like Mars One)? Not sure I like this kind of future… #InspirationMars
If only way to go to Mars is to sell media rights and "imagine Dr. Phil counseling the couple during the flight," I fold. #InspirationMars- And then some of the daily realities of spending that long on a spacecraft turned out not to be hugely appealing (though not all specific to Inspiration Mars!)
- Crew will drink same water and breathe same oxygen over and over again (after filtration!) #inspirationmars
- No extravehicular activity for #InspirationMars crew and just 600 cubic feet of living space. That's going to be a long 501 days.
- The feasibility study for Tito's Mars flyby calculates a need for one toilet roll per three days. Just so you know. #inspirationmars
- We interrupt this Storify for a Public Service Announcement:
- So, is now a good time to point out that the word "crewed" is no longer or clunky than "manned"? Seriously, no excuse. #InspirationMars
- Jonathan Clark is chief medical officer for Inspiration Mars. He looked after the health of Felix Baumgartner too, during his jump from not-quite-the-edge-of-space.
