Ilon Musk is upset by Trump's decision not to allocate additional funds for the exploration of Mars

This week, US President Donald Trump signed document S.422 . It outlines the main directions of the work of NASA for the next seven years, indicating the necessary for the implementation of all budget projects. According to a document already approved by the US Congress and signed by Trump, the agency will receive about $ 19 billion for its needs each year (this year - $ 19.5 billion, next - $ 19.1 billion).

In particular, money is allocated for the development and implementation of a long-term plan for space exploration, conducting new research and technologies, plus the implementation of other projects. "This law is aimed at supporting NASA scientists, engineers and astronauts," Trump said at the signing ceremony. In general, Congress and the president approved most of the areas of work planned by the agency. But some representatives of the private space sphere were unhappy. Among them - Ilon Musk, the head of SpaceX.

Trump gave a few more comments on S.422. His main idea was that the US government, supporting NASA, is primarily concerned with creating jobs for Americans. And only then - about the exploration of deep space. “We are creating jobs,” said the President of the United States. “These are many jobs, and they are good.”
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Not at all, Musk wanted to hear that, hoping that the government would allocate money to private companies that develop programs for the delivery of people and goods to Mars. “The signed document changes nothing about what NASA is doing. The existing programs remain, but the funds of the Martian programs are not increased, ”Musk complained to reporters. “Probably, in the future, new documents will be signed, separately for Mars, but this (document signed by Trump - ed.) Is not at all the same.” By the way, NASDA had to give up the astroid interception program with its transportation to the Moon - they don’t give them any money.

In fact, the law is not in itself a source of funding. Money is given after approval by special committees. In addition, Congress is primarily interested in the creation of missiles and spacecraft manufactured in the USA, and much less in investments in various technologies and research that once in the future will make it possible to master Mars. On the other hand, Trump did endorse the Martian direction - but only for NASA, the program that is being implemented now. Moreover, the landing of people on this planet was planned not for 2035, but for 2033. The difference is small, but Trump found this change necessary.

Mastering Mars requires hundreds of billions of dollars, and Congress understands this. Hence, almost complete indifference to the progress in the development of programs of this type. The US government has more pressing problems, so no one is going to allocate huge funds for the implementation of the rapid development of its neighbor.

But Musk would not Mask, if he stopped because of such trifles as lack of money. Probably in the future he plans to somehow resolve this issue, but for now he is engaged in the selection of suitable sites for the landing of colonists on Mars.

On this issue, he cooperates with NASA, yet the lack of additional funds does not mean the impossibility of working together on scientific fields. Experts from SpaceX and NASA are looking for a landing pad for the ship Red Dragon, which the Mask company is developing to deliver people and cargo to the Red Planet.

Site selection is carried out according to several criteria. One of the most important is the proximity of water ice deposits, which can be used for the needs of a colony or a separate expedition. In addition, the site should be located near the equator in order to get the maximum amount of solar energy here, converting it into electricity. Experts say that finding a site that meets these two criteria is a difficult task, so the search conditions have been slightly modified. Astronomers began to look for sites not further than the 40th parallel of southern and northern latitudes.



Already found several allegedly suitable under the search conditions sites . These are the four regions in the northern hemisphere of Mars. Three regions, Deuteronilus Mensae, Phlegra Montes and Utopia Planitia, according to scientists, initially looked quite suitable for disembarkation. Unfortunately, these regions can only be studied from photos of the Mars Reconnaissiance Orbiter. And just high-resolution photos showed that all three regions turned out to be quite rocky, so landing here can be problematic.

The fourth site, Arcadia Planitia, looks more promising. An analysis of photographs of this place showed that there are no rocks here, or a small number of them are present. The terrace itself has a polygonal shape. At about the same site another unit, the Phoenix , dropped in 2008.

According to Ilona Mask, his company is interested in finding suitable places for disembarking the colonists. As for the ship Red Dragon , it can easily be placed on the Arcadia Planitia. The company also does not mind sharing its spacecraft (which is still under development) with other operators. “We are open to deliver cargo using our platform to various regions of Mars,” said Musk. Red Dragon can deliver about a ton of payload to the planet, with the option of sealing delivered items in capsules. Such capsules can be on the surface of Mars before arriving there people who need the delivered goods. The test launch of Red Dragon is scheduled for spring 2018.