A Study of Risks Associated with using Conventional Propellants for the First Manned Mission
to Mars and Potential Solutions through Solar Sails
, 2
Abstract
Sending the first humans to Mars will be the most monumental achievement in space age history
as well as one of the most expensive. Considering the large number of resources required for this
future mission, it is extremely important that it gets executed as efficiently as possible. With new
and continuously developing technology, such as solar sails, current plans for the mission would
only benefit by giving some attention to how this technology could be applied. This study
examined some of the risks associated with utilizing conventional propellants for the first
manned mission to Mars as well as possible mitigation strategies for those risks through the use
of solar sails. Sources pertaining to chemical rocket propulsion were discussed to identify
substantial risks or issues, then cross-examined with sources exploring the development and
possible applications of solar sail propulsion to uncover possible solutions and mitigation
strategies. Challenges associated with chemical alternatives and solar sails were also addressed.
It was determined that for a crew transportation mission to Mars, chemical propulsion will be the
most optimal option. However, through qualitative analysis, it was determined that for a
precursor cargo transportation mission to Mars, chemical propulsion, while still a viable option,
may not be the most optimal.
, 3
A Study of Risks Associated with using Conventional Propellants for the First Manned Missions
to Mars and Potential Solutions through Solar Sails
The concept of solar sailing dates back to the 1600s through the observations of comets.
German astronomer Johannes Kepler wondered what caused a comet’s tail to spread so widely
and developed a hypothesis that the sun was responsible. His idea was that sunlight was heating
the comet enough to cause material to fly off from its surface, and although he was not capable
of proving this hypothesis, it was ultimately correct (The Planetary Society, 2022). Kepler
developed his hypothesis further to support the idea of a space craft utilizing a sail that could
capture sunlight the same way a sailboat captures the wind. On their website, The Planetary
Society (2022) provides a quote from a letter Kepler wrote to famous astronomer Galileo Galilei
in 1608 that states “Provide ships or sails adapted to the heavenly breezes, and there will be some
who will brave even that void.”
Kepler’s hypothesis did not achieve any foundation in academia until 1865, when
Scottish mathematician James Clerk Maxwell discovered that light itself was comprised of
packets of energy called photons (The Planetary Society, 2022). Despite a light particle’s
extremely small mass, it’s incredibly high velocity gives the particle momentum. This
momentum can be transferred between objects, and when photons come into contact with a
reflective surface like a solar sail, their momentum transfers to the sail, propelling it forward.
Eventually in the early twentieth century, a pair of Russian scientists, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
and Fridrikh Tsander, were able to test Kepler’s and Maxwell’s ideas through concepts in
engineering (The Planetary Society, 2022).
The idea of solar sailing did not surface again until the World War II era, where quick
technological developments in rocketry was bringing humanity closer than ever before to the
to Mars and Potential Solutions through Solar Sails
, 2
Abstract
Sending the first humans to Mars will be the most monumental achievement in space age history
as well as one of the most expensive. Considering the large number of resources required for this
future mission, it is extremely important that it gets executed as efficiently as possible. With new
and continuously developing technology, such as solar sails, current plans for the mission would
only benefit by giving some attention to how this technology could be applied. This study
examined some of the risks associated with utilizing conventional propellants for the first
manned mission to Mars as well as possible mitigation strategies for those risks through the use
of solar sails. Sources pertaining to chemical rocket propulsion were discussed to identify
substantial risks or issues, then cross-examined with sources exploring the development and
possible applications of solar sail propulsion to uncover possible solutions and mitigation
strategies. Challenges associated with chemical alternatives and solar sails were also addressed.
It was determined that for a crew transportation mission to Mars, chemical propulsion will be the
most optimal option. However, through qualitative analysis, it was determined that for a
precursor cargo transportation mission to Mars, chemical propulsion, while still a viable option,
may not be the most optimal.
, 3
A Study of Risks Associated with using Conventional Propellants for the First Manned Missions
to Mars and Potential Solutions through Solar Sails
The concept of solar sailing dates back to the 1600s through the observations of comets.
German astronomer Johannes Kepler wondered what caused a comet’s tail to spread so widely
and developed a hypothesis that the sun was responsible. His idea was that sunlight was heating
the comet enough to cause material to fly off from its surface, and although he was not capable
of proving this hypothesis, it was ultimately correct (The Planetary Society, 2022). Kepler
developed his hypothesis further to support the idea of a space craft utilizing a sail that could
capture sunlight the same way a sailboat captures the wind. On their website, The Planetary
Society (2022) provides a quote from a letter Kepler wrote to famous astronomer Galileo Galilei
in 1608 that states “Provide ships or sails adapted to the heavenly breezes, and there will be some
who will brave even that void.”
Kepler’s hypothesis did not achieve any foundation in academia until 1865, when
Scottish mathematician James Clerk Maxwell discovered that light itself was comprised of
packets of energy called photons (The Planetary Society, 2022). Despite a light particle’s
extremely small mass, it’s incredibly high velocity gives the particle momentum. This
momentum can be transferred between objects, and when photons come into contact with a
reflective surface like a solar sail, their momentum transfers to the sail, propelling it forward.
Eventually in the early twentieth century, a pair of Russian scientists, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
and Fridrikh Tsander, were able to test Kepler’s and Maxwell’s ideas through concepts in
engineering (The Planetary Society, 2022).
The idea of solar sailing did not surface again until the World War II era, where quick
technological developments in rocketry was bringing humanity closer than ever before to the
