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European Mars Mission
European manned Mars expedition. Study 2005. In 2005 the Mars Society Germany proposed a European Mars Mission (EMM) that could be launched using an improved version of the Ariane 5 booster.

Status: Study 2005. Gross mass: 120,000 kg (260,000 lb).

The split mission approach was adopted to allow launch of payloads launched directly by this booster from Earth to Mars. Cargo elements would be transferred on low energy, longer transit time trajectories, with only the crew element being sent on a high-energy, fast-transit trajectory. The launches needed to support a mission were spread across two launch windows to allow the Mars surface infrastructure to be pre-positioned and checked out prior to committing crews to the mission.

In 2005 the Mars Society Germany proposed a European Mars Mission (EMM) that could be launched using an improved version of the Ariane 5 booster. The split mission approach was adopted to allow launch of payloads launched directly by this booster from Earth to Mars. Cargo elements would be transferred on low energy, longer transit time trajectories, with only the crew element being sent on a high-energy, fast-transit trajectory. The launches needed to support a mission were spread across two launch windows to allow the Mars surface infrastructure to be pre-positioned and checked out prior to committing crews to the mission.

The scenario included a Mars in-situ propellant production plant. The plant would also generate fuel for surface transportation, reactants for fuel cells, and backup consumables (water, oxygen, and gases) for the life support system. Mars orbit capture and later entry into the Mars atmosphere would use a biconic aeroshell. The EMM mission used four element types:

Mission Sequence would be as follows:

An Ariane 5M heavy lift booster derived from existing Ariane 5 elements would be developed to support the European Mars Mission. This would cost 2 billion Euros to develop, and have a cost per launch of Euro 250-300 million - three times that of the basic Ariane 5. The three-stage booster would have a payload of 41 metric tons to Trans-Mars Injection and consist of the following:

Total cost for a European Mars Mission on a ten-year development schedule was estimated as Euro 10-15 billion (2 billion for launcher development, 2 billion for launch costs, and 6 to 11 billion for overall mission and spacecraft design, development, deployment and operations.)

Crew Size: 5.



Family: Mars Expeditions. Country: Europe. Agency: Mars Society.

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