NASA seeks cost-cutting solutions for return of Mars soil samples amid budget cuts

The agency said it will issue a formal request for proposals to various NASA facilities, laboratories and aerospace companies on April 16, the report said. NASA is looking for ways to streamline the Mars mission program amid technical challenges, budget limitations and rising expenses.

Alternative plans expected by late autumn

During a conference call with reporters, agency representatives said they expected to receive alternative proposals for review by late autumn or early winter.

NASA Associate Administrator Nikki Fox said the program will prioritize innovation and reliable technology to reduce the risks and costs associated with the overhaul project.

“As a way to reduce development time, risk and costs, the overhaul will focus on innovation and proven technology rather than major new technological leaps,” Fox told reporters.

Addressing budgetary and schedule issues

Following an independent review initiated by NASA in September 2023, it was clear that the Mars sample return program faced obstacles from its inception due to unrealistic budget and schedule expectations.

The review also noted organizational inefficiencies and ineffective leadership structures within the mission.

The initiative to revamp the Mars sample return strategy comes amid significant budget cuts imposed by Congress on space programs this year. These cuts have led to massive layoffs at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which plays a critical role in the Mars mission.

Challenges and objectives of Mars sample return

The Perseverance rover, developed by JPL, has been collecting mineral samples from Jezero Crater on Mars since 2021. These samples are sealed in tubes for future analysis, with the aim of uncovering possible signs of ancient microbial life.

Initially scheduled for launch in 2027–28 and return expected in the early 2030s, the Mars Sample Return Mission faced a cost estimate of $5–7 billion. However, recent designs indicate that the cost could rise to $11 billion, pushing the potential payback date beyond 2040.

NASA chief Bill Nelson said, “We want to get every new and fresh idea we can. The bottom line is that the $11 billion budget is too expensive, and the 2040 return date is too far away.”

Nelson stressed that maintaining such high funding levels would hinder progress on other important scientific endeavors, including missions to Saturn’s moon Titan, exploration of Venus, and surveys of near-Earth objects.

“These are the people who can figure out the hard things,” he said, expressing hope that industry partners will find a solution.

Perseverance rover is hard at work on Mars

NASA’s Perseverance rover has successfully collected 24 core samples in tubes since its landing in 2021 at Mars’ Jezero Crater, a site rich in ancient river delta deposits. According to the AP report, the primary objective is to collect more than 30 samples to carefully search for possible traces of life on ancient Mars.

The space agency is attempting to return at least a portion of these collected samples to Earth, and the undertaking requires an expensive multi-step process. Traveling to Mars to retrieve the tubes, and then launching from the planet, later rendezvous with another spacecraft to return the samples to Earth, would be an expensive affair, the AP reports.

Fox avoided giving a definite timeline for the return of the samples, saying such details would be outlined in upcoming proposals. “We’ve never launched from another planet, and that’s really what makes sampling Mars such a challenging and interesting mission,” he said.

Scientists have been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to examine Martian samples within their own laboratories, surpassing the limited capabilities of spacecraft-based analyzes conducted on the Red Planet. According to NASA, rigorous investigation is necessary to validate any signs of microbial life billions of years ago, when Mars was potentially habitable due to flowing water.

Additionally, these samples will play an important role in informing NASA decisions regarding future human exploration of Mars in the 2040s, Nelson said.

competition with china

China’s Tianwen-3 Mars sample return mission is headed for a simple “grab-and-go around 2030,” according to state media reports, which could make it the first country to achieve this milestone.

Although China’s mission is simple and will only collect samples from the area around its landing site, the first mission to recover rocks from another planet would represent a significant geopolitical achievement.

China’s 2030 mission to the Moon could also establish it as the next country to deploy a crew there, potentially preceding the NASA-led Artemis 3 landing.

Speaking to AFP, former top NASA official and Stanford professor G Scott Hubbard said it would be a warning to Western countries. He said, “If they are able to return samples from Mars before the US, even if it’s a grabbed sample that is almost scientifically worthless, it’s like a Sputnik moment.”

(With inputs from AFP, AP and Reuters)

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Published: April 17, 2024, 12:26 pm IST