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Space/Science » in reply to Do Moon Firsters Understand The Delta V Argument?

Re: Smart 1
Raoul — (archived)

<Smart 1 will take up to 17 months to reach the moon.
With our present technology, it takes 6 months to reach Mars.
So, yes, Mars is much closer in terms of time.
But wait...doesn't it depend on the propulsion method?
It took 15 months from Sputnik 1 to Lunik 1.
Meaning, the difference between reaching LEO form the ground or reaching the Moon from the ground weren't that big. (just reaching, not landing)
It took 7 years and 45 days between Sputnik and Mariner 4, the first successful Mars spacecraft to be launched.
The Delta-V isn't that much the issue. It's the time spent to reach the destination.
And there's something that no astronaut can train for, and that is how he will feel knowing he can't see the Earth for years. It's very different from seeing the Earth as a 4 degree wide bowl in the heaven.
But then, of course, humans have been on the Moon and not yet on Mars. It makes a huge difference in the urge to reach the red planet.

Raoul

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