The Goal
It was in 1969 that Neil Armstrong uttered his famous words after being the first man to set foot on the moon. The 1960’s space race spurred the economy and brought the United States of America to be more united than ever. The scientific advancements, the knowledge gained, and the accomplishments made were so immense they could not be assigned a monetary value.
In order to attain a long duration spaceflight, growing food is a requirement. The mass required to support a crew of three for six months on the ISS is 3,630 kg. This is a very large amount to lift into space and transport to mars. Much of this weight come from packaging, weight that cannot be By growing food, the mass to bring would be considerably less and save both money and resources.
Spaceponics would allow the crew to go on longer duration mission to explore more of space without sacrificing the waste produced by single use packaging. Currently, resupply missions provide astronauts with new food while taking the waste products. This would not be a viable option for a long duration mission to mars because of the isolation these astronauts would face.
The return on investment for a project of this scale is priceless. The scientific advancements and gains from a mission to mars could help establish colonization of environments outside of Earth. The economic benefits and collaboration would begin the second space race and give the United States a common goal. This would inspire a generation of youths and students to pursue careers in STEM fields, promote the space field, and create new paths unimaginable at this point.