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Mikhail Metzel / AP file
Millionaire spaceflier Dennis Tito flashes a thumbs-up sign during final preparations for his 2001 flight to the International Space Station. Now Tito is reportedly contemplating a mission to Mars.
By Alan Boyle,
Science Editor, NBC News
Dennis Tito, the millionaire investment whiz who became the first paying passenger to visit the International Space Station in 2001, has worked out a plan to send two astronauts to Mars and back without stopping. However, the privately backed 501-day flight would have to be launched in 2018 — or wait until the 2030s.
Details about the Red Planet flyby are trickling out in advance of a Washington news conference next week.
First word of the venture came out in a media advisory passed along by the SpaceRef website on Wednesday. The advisory from the Texas-based Griffin Communications Group describes a "Mission for America" that would capitalize on a favorable orbital opportunity to launch a round-trip mission to Mars in January 2018.
The advisory includes an invitation to attend a news conference at 1 p.m. ET Feb. 27 at the National Press Club in Washington, issued by the Inspiration Mars Foundation, which is described as a "newly founded nonprofit organization led by American space traveler and entrepreneur Dennis Tito."
Tito, a former rocket engineer, made his fortune as the founder of Wilshire Associates, a multibillion-dollar investment firm based in California. He made history in 2001 when he paid a reported $20 million for a ride aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft to the space station. At the time, the eight-day round trip was highly controversial and required changes in the policies governing space station operations. Since then, six other high-net-worth individuals have taken similar flights with little or no controversy. The current published price for such flights is upwards of $40 million.
In the nearly 12 years since his flight, Tito has taken a relatively low public profile in the private-sector spaceflight industry. Meanwhile, other millionaires and billionaires, ranging from SpaceX's Elon Musk to Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos to Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, have been in the vanguard.
Little is known about the Inspiration Mars Foundation, and the name doesn't turn up in databases for tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. The Internet domain names "InspirationMars.com" and "InspirationMars.org" were registered anonymously last October. But other than that, the only information that could be gleaned about Inspiration Mars comes from the media advisory, which says it's "committed to accelerating America's human exploration of space as a critical catalyst for future growth, national prosperity, new knowledge and global leadership."
"This 'Mission for America' will generate new knowledge, experience and momentum for the next great era of space exploration," the advisory said. "It is intended to encourage all Americans to believe again, in doing the hard things that make our nation great, while inspiring youth through Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education and motivation."
In addition to Tito, the speakers listed for next week's news briefing include Taber McCallum and Jane Poynter, who are veterans of the Biosphere 2 life-containment experiment and the top executives at Paragon Space Development Corp., which develops life-support systems for spacecraft. Jonathan Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon who now serves as an adviser for several space ventures, is also due to appear. Veteran TV journalist Miles O'Brien, who was once in line to take a trip to the space station, is to serve as moderator.
Update for 10:58 a.m. ET Feb. 21: The media advisory doesn't describe the specifics of the proposed mission, but spaceflight consultant Jeff Foust, publisher of the online NewSpace Journal, has come across information that sheds lots of additional light on Tito's plans. It turns out that Tito is due to give a presentation at the IEEE Aerospace Conference in Montana next month. He and his co-authors discuss the project in a paper prepared for the presentation. Here's a quick rundown of what Foust found:
The mission would involve a flyby of Mars with a free return back to Earth, without stopping. That type of low-energy trajectory requires a special set of orbital circumstances: The presentation says those circumstances exist for the 2018 opportunity but won't repeat until 2031. Two astronauts living in spartan conditions could make the 501-day trip in a modified SpaceX Dragon capsule, launched by SpaceX's yet-to-be-flown Falcon Heavy rocket.
Be sure to read Foust's full item on NewSpace Journal.
The plan seems to be just on the edge of doability. Among the questions that come up: Would the Dragon have adequate radiation shielding for the long-duration, deep-space trip? Can the crew cope with long-term isolation in close quarters, as well as the health effects of an extended zero-G trip? Can the Falcon Heavy truly be ready for a Mars trip in time for the 2018 opportunity? And who's going to pay for all this? Although there's no price tag attached to the plan, doing the mission seems likely to require billions of dollars. Tito may be rich, but is he that rich?
Update for 1:05 p.m. ET Feb. 21: Griffin Communications has confirmed the substance of the media advisory but released no additional information. The logistics for next week's briefing at the National Press Club are still being worked out. It's not yet known whether the proceedings will be webcast.
Update for 6:18 p.m. ET Feb. 21: A few more tidbits have trickled out: Even though the IEEE paper focuses on the SpaceX Dragon and Falcon Heavy, that doesn't mean SpaceX's participation in the project is a sure thing. The astronauts could ride on any of a range of space vehicles. One thing is for sure, however: Tito, who is now 72 years old, will not be making the spaceflight himself.
Although the IEEE paper casts the "Mission for America" as a private-sector effort, NASA would play a supporting role in technology development. A source who has been told about Tito's plans said the 2018 effort was not meant to provide competition for NASA's exploration effort, but instead provide support. NASA is working on a long-range program to send astronauts to a near-Earth asteroid in the mid-2020s, and to Mars and its moons in the mid-2030s.
The source was not authorized to speak publicly about Tito's plans, and thus spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity.
More about Mars ambitions:
- SpaceX founder wants to send hordes to Mars
- How a TV show could create a Mars colony
- Counting down to a mission to Mars
Alan Boyle is NBCNews.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter and adding the Cosmic Log page to your Google+ presence. To keep up with Cosmic Log as well as NBCNews.com's other stories about science and space, sign up for the Tech & Science newsletter, delivered to your email in-box every weekday. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
This story was originally published on Thu Feb 21, 2013 3:32 AM EST
Leave a Comment:
There's ton and tons of oil, gold, platinum, etc. on Mars. And there's no pesky natives to worry about and placate.
That should focus government's attention on Mars and get the ball rolling!
Why do you think there is such a push to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, whether or not life is or ever has been existing on Mars?
If Mars can be confirmed as lifeless, and never having had life, then you can imagine an all out call for exploitation of the Mars planet. But, if there ever was life on Mars, or particularly if there still is life on Mars, then all bets are off. That would be a major find for science. But it would mean an immediate halt to any and all exploitation efforts while science and study would increase.
Can't you just see the headlines for the first major 'tanker' spill in space?? :)
"Oil" is unlikely. If someone finds petroleum on Mars, they'll thereby prove that Mars once had a thriving ecosystem, which will actually be the more important discovery.
I hope he does not plan to "sue" if something goes wrong, like some cruise passemgers! I hope he realizes that help may be years away if something goes wrong.
Why do these millionaires always spend their money on things like this? Why can't they help out people on Earth first before giving to something like this?
Seems people tend to overlook problems in our local town and communities and focus on other things. Why not focus on looking at donating to a local Cause or Organization.
There are thousands of people on a list in need of a transplant of some kind on a waiting list and those waiting for funds for help to come through . Why not give some that money to 1 person and save their life? It's a sad world we live in..
I'm sure some millionaires do all those type of things, and some are just sad wretches who hardly know or care how much money they have, they're just trying to slog through their lame existence like most of us.
He is helping the people of Earth. It is unfortunate that many of the people of Earth are too ignorant to understand.
Take a look around. In the last 100 years we have taken a heavy toll on this planet. Sooner or later - "we" are gonna need some place else to go. Based on our primitive technology today - we need all the money we can get to develop the means to get the hell out of here!
I'll go! Pick me pick me!!
You can't take money to your grave, so why not take it to Mars where someone else can attempt to retrive it later.
I doubt that he could get 2 monkeys to go to mars. This guy, must have spaced out on his trip to the ISS. He should start out with a few learning flights to our Moon, before he tries for Mars. That is, if he has any money left over.
Space only becomes super expensive when government gets involved.
Lee, doing anything in space is always expensive.
SuperNormalGuy, how do you know he's not going to make a trip to our Moon?? Space Adventures is organizing a circumLunar flight and if I recall correctly they have already sold one seat. It's $150 million dollars per seat and you can find out all about it if you go to space adventures web page. It may sound like a crazy thing (particularly since they use Russian hardware), but it's actually going to happen.
http://www.spaceadventures.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Lunar.Details
http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2011/05/05/6591354-round-the-moon-mission-boosted?lite
Why would this cost billions? It's not like Nasa is involved. If they were, then yes, it would cost many billions of dollars. If they do pull this off, then maybe it'll open a few eyes as to the wastefulness and ineptitude of government ran programs compared to the efficiency and cost effectiveness of privately ran ventures.
Don't pretend like private enterprise is the end-all be-all of git-r-done ventures. Sure, there is ineptitude and bureaucracy in government but it also exists in private enterprise. Oh, and NASA uses the private sector to accomplish a lot of the work so separating the two is harder than it might seem.
Wonderful. I hope that this is real, and that he does send a manned mission to go around Mars. Good luck, and my family and I will all be anxiously waiting for the results of this fantastic dream. This article is truly good news!
These trips are fantasy and impossible until the day comes we have spacecraft with artificial gravity, among other things.
We have proven that we have the technical capability to send probes to Mars. We just have to upscale and add life-support to the mission. We have sent men to the moon and back. We just need to leverage the lessons learned from the lunar missions and apply them to the new Mars mission.
I agree artifical gravity is a really good thing to have, I would argue that sustainable water source, sustainable food supply, and finally electromagnetic shielding of some sort to protect the travelers from space radiation are more important.
With research & development along with testing, there is no reason why this cannot be accomplished except for the will of the people (and Congress for funding) to make this dream come true.
While those luxury items would be nice. (And the shielding is more than a luxury) I will bet that he will have no problem finding two volunteers to take the risk.
Too true, Michael, but I would hope that we would have something better than a tin can to travel in. I mean, it's the frickin' 21st Century for Christ's sake; can't we do better than the technology of the 70s & 80s?
Given the information in the update, Dragon capsule, two astronauts, 501 days, no landing, who would want to go on that mission?
If somebody had asked me that question 13 years ago, before my son was born, I would have been first in line waving my hand, jumping up and down yelling "Pick me! Pick me!" I would like to believe that there are other people who are just as willing to go.
Even now I want to get in that line and yell "Pick me!"
I think only one of those guys would come back alive. One would kill the other for sure.
I would go. And with proper training it's not that hard to get along with someone in small quarters for long periods of time.
But I would go in a heartbeat.
I don't know. No matter how well you are trained, some were around the 200,000th nervous tick, annoying speech habit or fart, someone gets their neck snapped. And remember, this isn't even a mission to set foot on the planet or even orbit it. A flyby. They are sending men to do a robot's job.
Mariah Carey and Nikki Minaj have been announced as the astronauts chosen for this noble event. 501 days, together, alone.
Sounds like a first to be the first with no other real intent. I admire the vision, but at least put them to work while they're there. Make it purpose-driven. I'm pretty much sure that whomever goes will either not come back at all or will come back absolutely mad (insane), especially if one of the party dies off early. I'm getting claustrophobic just thinking of it.
If you get claustrophobic just thinking of it, then you're not qualified. No big deal; 99.999% of people could be unqualified, and they'd still have more applicants than they can take.
Personally, if not for my family, I think I'd do just fine. Give me a good laptop with plenty of disk space, and a good dev environment, and I'll spend 500 of those 501 days writing some cool software and sharing it with my roommate. That's about two good-sized projects, or one big one. Easy peasy.
(The other day will be spent with my nose plastered to the window, gawking at Mars as it rolls by almost close enough to touch.)
No way I would want to pay for someones joy ride to Mars. There is absolutely no purpose in this trip other then to just say I did it. What experiments to be performed? Is there to be an orbit of Mars other then just one? Must be nice to be rich and state I wish to go to Mars just because I can. Going to Mars we need the best people possible and a reason other then I can.
I completely disagree.
First of all, exploration for exploration sake is perfectly acceptable and should be encouraged. If you were a teenager and you lived on a small lake and had no other way to get to the other side would you build a boat? Why? Do you really need a reason to get to the other side? Do you really need an activity to do once your are there? What if it's getting dark and windy and there is a chance you might not make it back if you don't return to your own side of the lake right when you reach the other side??
This is the first trip to Mars (if it happens). You can bet dollars to pesos that they will be doing all kinds of medical experiments and monitoring while in route. The idea that this will be some kind of "joyride" just doesn't hold water. It's 501 days inside a craft the size of a short yellow bus. For much of the journey they will not have much of anything to look at out the windows. There will be a delay on all communications. I don't understand where people get this "joyride" idea. This will be a hardship on whoever makes the trip. And, at his age, Dennis Tito will probably be left in a wheel chair after this kind of a trip due to the effects of cosmic radiation on his skeletal structure.
The reason to make the trip is that it has never been made or even attempted. Like your first trip across that lake as a teenager, you just want to see the other side. You just want to look back and gain a new perspective on your home. You just want to explore!
Have you never taken a road trip just for the trip? Have you never talked to a girl who is out of your league just because you knew you had nothing to lose? Have you never faced a challenge and taken it on just because it's difficult? Have you no spirit??
This has to be a joke. No way are they going to let a 77 year old man (Which he will be in 2018) go out into space to Mars on a 500 day trip. You have to be out of your mind. It serves absolutely no purpose whatsoever. I certainly do not want to pay towards it. He had is claim to fame in 2002.
Nobody said Tito himself was planning to go.
send 2 good looking ladies to Mars ,and sell the video stream rites to a network.
Hell we haven't even perfected in-atmosphere flight. Sure, we have come a long way - but in no way are we completely and fully prepared to head out into open space.
Fantastic news. I think it's doable, and I don't see why it should cost billions — the primary cost would be the launch, which runs millions, not billions. And yes, two guys living in a Dragon capsule for a year and a half would be tedious, but whenever they start to feel stir crazy, they can just say to themselves: "We're going to frickin' Mars. MARS!"
I'm not a Mars nut by any means (I see much more advantage in developing cislunar space and building orbital space settlements). But I do agree that this mission would capture the imagination of humanity, and having a hard 2018 deadline might just be enough to keep the schedule from slipping. In short, I love it, and I hope it happens!
Exploration for exploration sake is fine by me and i certainly want to pay towards it.
Eh, Mr Tito can you spare dime?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2VCwBzGdPM
I just saw the most contemptible, but alas common remark on this thread: "We should not go there just to say we've been". And then he mentioned the "practical" benefits of previous manned space endeavors. No, you idiot, we go so we can say "We are there!"
We go into space because the human race's purpose is not just to rut and reproduce, like other animals -- our purpose is to explore, to learn, eventually to populate the universe, or at least the Local Group.
I really am sick of these intellectual bean counters whose vision can't seem to extend beyond, "Where's the profit?" And I'm really sick of pointy-headed academics who say we can do it unmanned. They all miss the bloody point!
Those of a certain age can remember, that when 2001: A Space Odyssey came out, 2001 was quite a plausible year for having a colony on the moon, and not long after that a mission to Jupiter. There was even a TV series, with Martin Landau and Barbara Bain -- Space 1999. So, what does 2001 bring us? A new chapter in human depravity and devolution. What a betrayal we are!
How mediocre we have become, and what lame excuses we offer for our mediocrity, as we wallow in self-absorption and self-gratification. China is planning its next manned space flight, while here the FDA has just approved new silicone boob implants.
Manned space flight should be the #1 priority of the civilized world. Instead, it's been relegated to an expendable sideshow. Dennis Tito, Elon Musk, Richard Branson, Mars One, Stephen Hawking (who says it's a matter of survival), and men like them, are heroes for recognizing that the sooner we are back in space, exploring, colonizing, populating, the better.
Admit it, you want to do a treatment and stick it in front of some producer's face in Hollywood to remake Space 1999.
Let me know when we are allowed to rut and reproduce in space.
Shut up; you had me at, "Hello."
But then you lost me when you called out someone else's post and called them an idiot without asking him (or her) where they are coming and further explain themselves.
Where as China has made massive leaps in technological advances in their space endeavors, they are no where near the accomplishments we have.
What's wrong with boob implants?
Well, my question is the same one I have had for quite some time. In my youth I was a big booster of manned spaceflight, but in my maturity I have come to question the utility. These folk who claim to know it is the purpose of the human race to spread itself across the universe now seem deluded to me. How is that a purpose? Particularly in terms of our stewardship of this one planet, I question the wisdom of colonizing others. Maybe we should become spacefarers when we have earned the right to claim we can occupy a world without devouring it.
There are things we can learn out there that will be of tremendous value to us and we should set ourselves to making robots that can gather that knowledge, but we ourselves are not at this time equipped socially or mentally to go anywhere off this world in peace. You people who push for manned settlement of other worlds are conquistadors.
KUDUS TO THE BRAVADO (or intent thereof)...in this country you can do stuff like this, for now anyways. I hope it works or they don't try. If they were to fail the nannys would go and take all our bottle rockets away.
I hear that there is an Iranian monkey who has volunteered for the trip. Being spam in a can for 501 days sounds like a perfect job for a monkey. The only thing such a trip could demonstrate is that a primate can survive the trip. It certainly could serve no other scientific or commercial purpose. Now if Tito proposed to do something while at Mars, then it might be slightly more interesting. But this isn't even flags and footprints. No science, no commerce, no glory all add up to no purpose for this ridiculous mission.
well that's great -private investment is necessary
look into renting kennedy it's not owned by nasa
but I have noticed I see orions belt each night over florida-now each night it is a different distance as is the moon over a period of days it stretches and then goes back to the closest position
the reason is that if you can time your lift off at the closest position surly you would save fuel costs as well as if you find where the cones of least density are -the smallest shape that you can use to make up the cones are triangles - some get less dense as the atmosphere gets higher while others will have the same affect but the actually point of exit and reentry would be the same( -it may be over the Bermuda triangle)it's a question of the least friction-now if you can devise a method of pushing particles out of the way a head of the craft using a signal that pulses electromagnetics that repel particles out of the way
but the lines wouldn't be 100 straight because of the curvature of space and the planet
you can also calculate the trajectory of the planet by calculating the distance the stars are away each night and the speed they move across the sky
also could we not send a message from earth using lights on top of buildings as each country moves into the dark of night
use Google earth to spell a message by looking for building s to put lights on the top and as the world spins a sequence of lights as we move through the dark which would be seen from space
write hello using the top of the buildings and you should see the word from space
also if the penny is our lowest denomination and is made up of copper surly the fed would have to own enough copper to cover all of the dollar notes and cents in circulation and should not be based on the gold standard but by copper and nickel
I wish I had the money to do something like this
what a ride-good luck
the earth can be divided into triangular sections to the smallest scales
also stars don't disappear during the day we can't see them because of thelight defracting giving off a shade of blue
maybe worth checking the position during the day they may even be closer -
Let's maximize the effort to "visit" Mars. Why not send 2 Falcon Heavy launch to make the trip. One carries 2 Bigelo modules and supplies. The other carries the manned capsule and supplies. They merge (dock if you will) on their common trajectory to Mars. One Bigelo (or both) is inflated to provide much needed room for the journey. While at the Mars location the other Bigelo module is inflated and left in permanent orbit around Mars for future trips. There are lots of permutations to these ideas.... E.G., send only one Bigelo module, leave it at Mars and have the astronauts endure the return trip in their capsule under"Spartan" conditions. Leave as much fuel and supplies in Mars orbit for future missions.
"Yea a joy ride..."
Don't forget that there's an entire category of people who see all human space flight that way, and they pay takes, too...
"...that the tax payer paid close to 100 billion dollars for, that would have been better served to spend on human exploration of other planets."
So, your idea of space research (which is not just 'exploration') consists of hopscotching across the soplar system, putting boots on the ground in the next gravity well, and moving on?
There was a time when LEO was 'the frontier.' Now it's a relaitvely familiar place that we do ongoing research. One day, that will be true for the Moon...and even Mars. And at that time I suspect someone like you will wonder why we still spend money on those 'tired, boring, stuck' places. News flash. Just because you've been somewhere a few, or even many times, doesn't mean you know all about it, or that there's nothing else useful to do there.
"What did it get us two space Shuttle destroyed 14 dead astronauts..."
Neither of which had anything to do with ISS. Another News flash: Wherever you go, you're going to have to launch from, and return to Earth at some point. Oh, and Apollo 13 should have shown us that it's not hard to get in trouble beyond LEO, as well. Would that crew's demise have been more acceptable to you, because it wasn't on the way to/from LEO?
"...and dependency on the Russians to give us a lift"
That's what happens when you retire (and we all knew it was coming, since 2005) a system that's too fragile and expensive to operate, without having something to put in its place first. That, too, can be laid at the feet of Congress. But that's okay, it's coming anyway. You seem not to know about Commercial Crew (of which the SpaceX Dragon is part) either. Russian dependency to LEO will soon come to a welcome end. and soon after, will be the end of US manned space flight being purely a government-dependent activity.
Also be advised that in 1993, the ISS program came within one vote of cancellation. But I'm pretty sure that not one person in Congress who opposed it, made an argument to the effect that; "We should be using this money to go back to the Moon and/or on to Mars, instead." Without ISS, it's not clear what we'd be doing in terms of US manned space flight by now...
"Ha, yea we look good..."
Fortunately, we don't do this for entertainment, so, 'looking good' or not, is irrelevant.