— Data from NASA's Perseverance rover have confirmed the presence of sediments on the Red Planet that can be identified as the remains of ancient lakes. What does this mean for science and why is the attention of scientists around the world focused on the search for water or traces of its presence on Mars?
— The remains of ancient lakes, located under alluvial material, at the bottom of the Jezero crater, may contain organic remains of former Martian life. If they are discovered, we can conclude that life existed on Mars in the past. Where there is water on Earth, life is always found. The presence of signs of ancient lakes is another argument in favor of the existence of water on Mars when it was warmer and, possibly, habitable.
— Why are lunar projects also focused on finding water, what can such finds give science?
— Without water, a person cannot exist, and delivering any substance into space is very expensive. Therefore, when colonizing other celestial bodies, it is important to obtain water locally. The ability to use local water will make the process of lunar exploration more efficient.
A photograph of the far side of the Moon taken by the automatic interplanetary station Luna-3, launched from Earth on October 4, 1959
RIA News
Lunar water ice could be used as a source of liquid water for drinking and growing plants. Water can also be split into hydrogen and oxygen using power plants equipped with solar panels or a nuclear generator. These components are used in the manufacture of rocket fuel. The resulting oxygen can be used for breathing. Where the lunar bases will be located will depend on the location of water on the Earth's natural satellite.
Analysis of lunar soil and lunar water is also of important scientific importance - this will make it possible to find out how much water was delivered to the Moon by various bodies containing water, and how much water was formed directly on it. The fact is that under the influence of the solar wind, hydrogen ions crash into the lunar soil and interact with oxygen, as a result water molecules can be synthesized.
— Previously, scientists talked about the possible presence of subglacial lakes on Mars in the past. The researchers were able to draw such conclusions from an analysis of the topography of the Martian ice sheet - it is similar to the surface of terrestrial reservoirs covered with ice. Is this a compelling hypothesis, and is there new evidence to support it?
- Yes, she is convincing. The fact is that due to the movement of water under the ice, depressions are formed at the bottom of the reservoir, which alternate with raised areas of the bottom relief. In this case, a wavy relief is formed, it is observed on Earth and on Mars, as well as in computer modeling. This can indeed be considered strong evidence in favor of the fact that there were bodies of water on Mars in the past.
Gettyimages.ru
© NASA Public Domain Imagery
— The search for water on the Moon and Mars is a strategic task for scientists around the world. What will be the next step if it is discovered and investigated? Will it be possible to start designing extraterrestrial bases and colonies?
— Research on the design of extraterrestrial bases is already underway, including in Russia. The United States plans to carry out a manned flight to the Moon as part of the Artemis program in 2025. As part of the Artemis 2 mission, a flyby of the Moon is planned, and as part of the Artemis 3 mission, a landing on the Moon is planned. As part of the Artemis program, after 2027, NASA plans to begin creating a multi-module Lunar Gateway station in lunar orbit. In 2033, as part of the Artemis 10 mission, a human landing and long stay on the Moon is planned. As for Mars, due to its great distance from us, manned flights to it will be able to take place much later than to the Moon.
At the same time, for the full colonization of the Moon and Mars, it is necessary, as on Earth, to learn how to build buildings there, grow vegetables and grains, and produce rocket fuel. It is necessary to develop methods for the industrial production of metals, oxygen and helium-3 from regolith. The primary task is to extract water and convert some of it into oxygen and hydrogen.
— Elon Musk claims that by 2050 people will already live on Mars. Is this realistic, or are such statements simply intended to draw attention to the topic?
— It is in principle possible to land people on Mars and even ensure their life there for some time, although such a project requires colossal funding. But the problem is that due to the great remoteness of this planet, it will be much more difficult to return people from it alive than from the Moon. This is hampered by the greater mass of the Red Planet than the Moon, and, accordingly, gravity. For a spacecraft to launch from the surface of Mars, it will need a lot of fuel. It is unlikely that such volumes will actually be brought with you; accordingly, local sources of fuel will be required.
Elon Musk
AP
Therefore, a human flight to the Red Planet in 2050 or earlier may be a one-way flight.
And, of course, there is no need to talk about any economic profitability of such missions; such flights will cost too much for anyone to hope to somehow make money on them. For now, we are talking exclusively about scientific interest. Well, in general, before people explore the Moon, it is too early to talk about mass flights of people to Mars.
— And if we talk in general, not only about Mars, then the exploration of extraterrestrial planets, satellites and asteroids can bring practical benefits to humanity?
— I repeat that in the foreseeable future it is more correct to talk about the exploration of the Moon and asteroids, since this is the most realistic. The absence of an atmosphere and lower gravity will make it possible to build observatories on the lunar surface, equipped with optical and radio telescopes that can obtain much clearer images than from Earth. And it will be easier to maintain such devices than orbital telescopes.
In addition, on the Moon and asteroids, industrial extraction of valuable minerals that are scarce on Earth is possible. For example, rare earth elements, uranium, etc. Due to the deep vacuum and available solar energy, space opens up new horizons for electronics, metallurgy, metalworking and materials science. Thus, conditions for processing metals and creating microelectronic devices on Earth are less favorable due to the large amount of free oxygen in the atmosphere.
Also today, the prospects for mining the helium-3 isotope on the Moon are being discussed; in the future, it may find use as thermonuclear fuel. However, this is a matter of long-term prospects, since industrial thermonuclear reactors operating on helium-3 for energy production are still only being developed.
— How is such research progressing in the world now and which countries are leading in this? Is it possible, for example, to colonize another planet without the international cooperation of earthlings?
— Until 2030, in addition to the United States, automatic flights to the Moon are planned by Russia, China, Japan, Israel, the European Union, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The Russian station Luna-26 is planned to enter lunar orbit in 2027, and the soft landing of Luna-27 is scheduled for 2028.
As for manned missions, the United States hopes to land astronauts on the Moon as part of Artemis 3 in 2026, China plans to implement a similar mission before 2030, Russia - between 2031 and 2040.
© Roscosmos State Space Corporation via AP
If we talk about cooperation, then some countries, for example the USA and China, are, in principle, capable of implementing programs for the exploration of the Moon alone. Nevertheless, international cooperation is a common practice in astronautics. Even amid political tensions between the United States and Russia, Russian cosmonauts flew to the ISS on the American Crew Dragon, and American astronauts flew on the Russian Soyuz MS. Joint flights will continue in 2024.
In addition, there is a Chinese-Russian project “International Lunar Research Station”, in which, in addition to Russia and China, other states participate. The goal is to build a base on the Earth’s natural satellite. The American lunar exploration program Artemis (Artemis) involves the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and the Canadian Space Agency. More than 30 countries have joined this treaty.
— One of the tasks of the next lunar project, Luna-26, which is planned for 2027, is to create a map of the distribution of water ice on the Moon. How big is this task?
— The creation of such maps in Russia is carried out by the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences based on data from the Russian neutron telescope LEND (“Lunar Research Neutron Detector”). The telescope is located on board the American Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). And the data that the Luna 26 mission should collect will complement the information from the telescope and make it possible to clarify and expand the maps.
Surface ice at the Moon's poles: South Pole on the left, North Pole on the right
NASA
A gamma and neutron spectrometer will be installed on board the Luna-26 spacecraft, which should conduct physical geological exploration of the lunar regolith and soil. Based on the gamma radiation accumulated in the soil, it will be possible to create a general averaged map of the elemental composition and amount of volatile substances, including water ice. It is planned that Luna-26 will fly over almost all areas of the Moon, this will make it possible to create the most complete map.
— How does science estimate the overall volume of water in the Universe? And is the presence of liquid water a prerequisite for the origin of life, as well as for human colonization of other planets?
— The volumes of water in the Universe are enormous, since water is synthesized as a result of thermonuclear reactions in stars. Water is a condition for the emergence of life, but this also requires that the exoplanet be in the so-called habitable zones, that is, those areas in the vicinity of the star where water can be in a liquid state.
Such planets have already been discovered, for example, the exoplanet Proxima Centauri b, where, according to calculations, there may be liquid water in quantities exceeding the volume of all Earth's oceans. And the parent star of this planet, Proxima Centauri, is the closest to the Sun.
We do not yet know whether there is life on such planets, but it is clear that the presence of water on them is a prerequisite for human colonization of these objects. Scientists do not rule out the possibility that life forms other than those on earth may exist. Among the main candidates for replacing water as a universal solvent and transport medium are ammonia and methane.