The Mars Society is pleased to welcome Dean Cheng, a Senior Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, as a virtual plenary speaker during the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 15-18. Specializing in China’s space program and international relations, Mr. Cheng is part of the Heritage Foundation’s Asian Studies Center – Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy. He has written extensively on the technological implications of China’s space program and ‘dual use’ issues associated with… READ MORE >
Topic Area: The Mars Society
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that the 2020-21 field season at the Mars Desert Research Station will be held this fall as previously planned. MDRS is the largest and longest-running Mars simulation facility in the world involving U.S. and international crews. MDRS management, led by its director, Dr. Shannon Rupert, has worked tirelessly on plans and precautions to ensure protection of each visiting crew and is confident in moving forward with the upcoming field season. Some individual MDRS… READ MORE >
Dr. Abigail Fraeman, a planetary scientist and deputy project scientist for NASA-JPL’s Curiosity rover mission, will provide an update about the space agency’s Mars rover missions during the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 15-18. Her experience with NASA-JPL missions to the solar system are extensive, including having served as co-investigator for the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), principal investigator for NASA Development & Advancement of Lunar Instrumentation, co-investigator for NASA Planetary Data Analysis &… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Rick Tumlinson, Founding Partner of Space Fund, a major venture capital firm for space technology companies, and a prominent space activist, will give a virtual presentation during our 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 15-18. Named one of the top 100 most influential people in the space field by Space News, Mr. Tumlinson is credited by many with helping start the NewSpace revolution – which has led to commercial… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Dr. David Poston, leader of the Compact Fission Reactor Design Team at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, will give a virtual plenary talk during the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 15-18. Dr. Poston’s research team at Los Alamos is responsible for the design and development of nuclear fission reactors for NASA, civilian and defense applications in space. As part of this, he serves as the Chief Reactor Designer… READ MORE >
Dr. Sarah Milkovich, lead Science Systems Engineer for NASA-JPL’s Mars Perseverance rover, scheduled to launch this July, will give a virtual update about the mission to the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, set for October 15-18. During her 14 years at JPL, Dr. Milkovich has specialized in science planning and operations for landed and orbital spacecraft, geomorphology and planetary science research, science communication and the ability to handle nebulous problems. Prior to the Mars 2020 rover mission, she served… READ MORE >
Presentations for the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention in October are invited dealing with all matters (science, engineering, politics, economics, technology, public policy, etc.) associated with the exploration and settlement of the planet Mars. Abstracts of no more than 300 words should be sent by Friday, July 31st (5:00 pm MT). Those submissions received after the deadline may not be included in the convention literature and are lower priority for adding to the final schedule. Those intending to submit an abstract… READ MORE >
Dr. Chris McKay, a senior planetary scientist at NASA Ames Research Center and one of the co-founders of the Mars Underground, will give a virtual plenary talk during the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled for October 15-18. A renowned astrobiologist and expert on planetary atmospheres and terraforming, Dr. McKay’s research focuses on the evolution of the solar system and the origins of life. He is also involved in planning for future Mars missions including human exploration. He has… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to welcome Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Founder and Executive Chairman of the X PRIZE Foundation, as one of its plenary speakers at the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled to be held virtually October 15-18, 2020. Named several years ago by Fortune as one of the “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders,” Dr. Diamandis is an international pioneer in the fields of innovation, commercial space and incentive-based competitions. His X PRIZE initiative is best known for… READ MORE >
The 2020 Mars Society Poster Contest begins today! Members, friends and space enthusiasts are all invited to submit a creative poster for consideration, with the winning design to be used as the primary promotional tool for the 23rd Annual International Mars Society Convention, scheduled to be held around the world via the Internet on October 15-18. Those artists intending to design a poster for this first-time virtual global event are asked to incorporate the theme of this year’s conference –… READ MORE >
An excellent report by Clément Plagne, journalist for Crew 223 (Supaero II) currently stationed at the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, explaining why he and his team participate in the MDRS analog program. If you’re reading this, it probably means that you’re either a family member or friend of ours, interested in science and the exploration of Mars or both. From your point of view, being out in the desert and being like astronauts for some time… READ MORE >
The Mars Society is pleased to announce the holding of an international contest for the best design plan of a Mars city state of 1,000,000 people. There will be a prize of $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second, $2,500 for third, $1,000 for fourth and $500 for fifth. In addition, the top 20 papers will be published in a new book “Mars City States: New Societies for a New World.” The city state should be self-supporting to the maximum… READ MORE >
Mars Society President Dr. Robert Zubrin visited Boca Chica, Texas yesterday to meet with SpaceX Founder & CEO Elon Musk. During their meeting, Mr. Musk explained his company’s extraordinary plan to begin the human settlement of the planet Mars, which was very much in evidence as hundreds of people were lined up outside the facility to join his team to build Starships. Dr. Zubrin asked Mr. Musk what the Mars Society could do to help his Mars effort and was… READ MORE >
In October 2018, the Mars Society announced that it was holding a special international contest called “The Mars Colony Prize” for designing the best plan for a Mars colony of 1,000 people. There would be a prize of $10,000 for first place, $5,000 for second and $2,500 for third. In addition, the top 20 papers would be published in a new book – “Mars Colonies: Plans for Settling the Red Planet.” This is that book. The 580 page grey-scale softcover… READ MORE >
The Mars Society’s MDRS – Mars Desert Research Station, the world’s largest and longest-running Mars analog program, welcomed a special Mars Academy USA (MAU) crew to its campus last week to begin an historic dual habitat simulation lasting two weeks. During this mission, one crew is operating at MDRS, while a second crew works out of the MAU habitat, which consists of a series of interlocking geometric tents that house crew quarters and a research area. The crew is made up… READ MORE >