A Shortcut To Mars

Cosmic Shortcuts Current mission plans and calculations estimate that a round trip to Mars can take nearly three years, but a new study on the orbital path of an asteroid suggests this journey could be completed in less than 12 months. Despite technological advancements, astronauts need up to 10 months just to reach the red planet located some 140 million miles from Earth. This distance changes depending on their orbits, so the best time for a spacecraft to make the journey is when both Earth and Mars align perfectly – known as “Mars opposition,” which happens every 26 months. But cosmologist Marcelo de Oliveira Souza of Brazil’s State University of Northern Rio de Janeiro believes that there could be some shortcuts. Souza based his recent findings on the flight path of 2001 CA21, a near-Earth asteroid that appeared to cross the orbits of both our planet and Mars at a steady five-degree tilt. He noted that the asteroid’s early trajectory during the October 2020 Mars opposition hinted at the possibility of “ultra-short” travel routes between the planets. “This was a surprise for me – I was not looking for this,” he told Live Science. Using standard orbital calculations and constraining routes to remain close to the asteroid’s orbital plane, Souza calculated this trip for the upcoming Mars oppositions in 2027, 2029 and 2031. The calculations suggested that the 2031 Mars opposition would be the best time to visit Earth’s neighbor because the planets align so perfectly that it “supports two complete sub-year round-trip missions consistent with the CA21-anchored plane,” Futurism wrote. Souza suggested two scenarios: The fastest one would see astronauts leaving Earth on April 20, 2031, and reaching Mars by May 23. After a one-month mission, they could come back home on Sept. 20, making the total mission time about 153 days. Meanwhile, a more fuel-efficient round trip would take about 226 days, but that still beats current mission timelines. The author acknowledged that his findings remain theoretical, noting that a lot of factors could influence the journey’s length, from propulsion methods and fuel capacity to the total mass of the payload. Still, the study could help narrow the search for more efficient interplanetary routes. “Maybe this can change the idea that we need more than two years to go to Mars and return,” he told Live Science.