Lunar and Planetary Institute
Lunar and Planetary Institute

 

 

New Space Roadmap Released

August 23, 2013
Source: NASA

The Global Exploration RoadmapSpace agencies participating in the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) have developed a new report that has just been released, the Global Exploration Roadmap for 2013. The participating space agencies represent Italy, France, Canada, Germany, the European Space Agency, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United States, the Ukraine, Russia and the United Kingdom. The report presents a plan of action for space exploration.

The initial roadmap issued in September 2011 identified two potential pathways toward the driving goal of human exploration of Mars:  “Asteroid Next” and “Moon Next.”

Building on this work, the 2013 roadmap includes a single reference mission scenario that reflects the importance of a stepwise evolution of critical capabilities that are necessary for executing increasingly complex missions to multiple destinations, leading to human exploration of Mars.

Lunar Vicinity/Surface Missions

As spelled out in the just-released report, using planned and conceptual capabilities, the ISECG Mission Scenario “identifies a set of missions in the lunar vicinity and on the lunar surface that advance readiness for human Mars missions after 2030.”

Extended duration crew missions in the lunar vicinity and missions to an easily accessible asteroid will enable discoveries and allow demonstration of the transportation, habitation, robotic servicing, and other key systems on which long duration missions into deep space must rely. As cited in the report, “Human missions to the lunar surface will allow critical demonstrations of planetary exploration capabilities and techniques, while pursuing the highest priority lunar science objectives.”

ISECG Observations

In a conclusion section, several “observations” are made:

To view the report, visit www.nasa.gov/exploration/about/isecg.

 

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Last updated August 23, 2013