Is Donald Trump In A Ramp Up Mood In Space Missions? NASA May Opt For Manned Mission In The First Orion Flight
The first flight of Orion spacecraft could see astronauts on board if things work in a smoother way. It is reported that NASA is looking for the manned mission and has given instructions to look for the possibility. It can be looked as the influence of President Donald Trump as he is willing to see some positive action in the sector.
It should be noted that the first flight of Orion was considered to be without astronauts and was scheduled for 2018. The spacecraft started developing in 2011 and is designed to carry 4 astronauts and is expected to assist the space missions of NASA for taking the man to Mars and asteroids. NASA has officially confirmed that it is looking for the possibilities of a manned mission in its first flight, however, it confirmed that data would drive the final decision.
NASA is also looking for the advantages and disadvantages of the manned mission in the first flight of Orion, called as Exploration Mission -1 or EM-1. "We are not much changing from our stance on the EM-1 mission which is scheduled in 2018, but the study helps us to understand what to add and what to change to include people in the mission," said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator of NASA for Human Exploration and Operations Missions Directorate.
The team seemed to be excited with the instructions and they said that they are happy with the latest changes and they not considering it as a burden. Incidentally, there are reports suggesting that President Trump wants to speed up its mission to the moon and take some bold steps. If that happens, then it could be the first manned mission to the moon since 1972.
The officials, however, are concerned that the changes make the mission riskier but Gerstenmaier thinks that there are options to reduce the risks with some alternative plans. It includes floating Orion in space for a day or so to ensure life systems inside the spacecraft works well. If something goes wrong, the plan of manned mission can be aborted. The feasibility test on the manned mission is expected to be completed in a month.
