NASA sees as unacceptable China to bring samples from Mars before the US

A few days ago, NASA presented its strategy to bring Mars soil samples, running against time to do this before the Chinese. To this end, the US has two strategies, but none more competitive than that presented by the eastern country so far.

The original plan, designed by NASA and the European space agency, was considered difficult to implement. With this, two other options are being evaluated and the decision should come out in 2026. It is estimated that, depending on the choice, the alternative can cost between $ 5.8 billion and $ 7.1 billion, while the original would be around $ 11 billion.

In this scenario, NASA’s Council had to postpone the date for the return of samples from 2031 to 2040, a delay classified as “simply unacceptable” by NASA administrator Bill Nelson.

The new head of the US space agency, appointed by Donald Trump, is another member of the Billionaires club to compose the government. This is Jared Isaacman, who has already led two private orbit missions using Elon Musk’s Space X rockets, which also makes up the Trumpist Management. Before occupying the post, Isaacman stated that he would never “settle in second place.”

Meanwhile, China says it is ready to launch its mission, Tianwen-3, as early as 2028 and bring samples from Mars to Earth around 2031, the year the competitor was leaving.

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According to the Xinhua agency, scientists at the Deep Space Exploration Laboratory in China outlined their exploration strategy in an article published in the November issue of National Science Review magazine. The plan includes where to collect sample, what to choose, how to collect, and how to use the collected materials.

Scientists proposed 86 potential landing sites, concentrated mainly in the former region of Chryse Planitia and in the region of Utopia Planitia, which cover various geological environments, such as old back, deltas, old lakes and canyons systems, providing favorable conditions for the origin and preservation of ancient potential life, according to the article.

The Tianwen-3 Mission will carry useful loads developed through international cooperation, and China will collaborate with scientists from around the world to conduct joint research on Mars samples and detection data.

The country also plans to probe the Jupiterian system to investigate the history of the evolution of Jupiter and its moons during its Tianwen-4 mission.

The goal of both the Chinese and US mission is to gather life evidence on the planet, a goal that is central to the current space race.

With agencies