Year: 2015

Dear Mars Society Supporter, It has truly been an exciting year for Mars and human space exploration with NASA’s announcement of the Journey to Mars program that includes a human mission to the Red Planet, astronaut Scott Kelly starting a one-year mission on board the ISS, the highly-publicized debut of “The Martian” movie, the successful growth of SpaceX and the commercial space industry, and NASA’s recent confirmation of water on the surface of Mars. For the first time since humans… READ MORE >

The Mars Society, its staff and membership commend SpaceX, its founder, Elon Musk, and its team of scientists and engineers on the successful landing of the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket at Cape Canaveral. SpaceX brought the rocket back to Earth for a soft touchdown, marking the first-ever rocket landing during an orbital launch. This major accomplishment proves launch vehicle re-usability, a pivotal event that will move humanity one step closer to exploring the solar system, and with… READ MORE >

The Mars Society will convene its 19th Annual International Mars Society Convention on the beautiful tree-lined campus of the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. from September 22 – 25, 2016. The main convention events will take place in the Edward J. Pryzbyla University Center. The four-day conference will bring together leading scientists, engineers, policymakers, government officials, entrepreneurs and journalists to address the significance of the latest scientific discoveries, technological advances and political-economic developments that could open the way… READ MORE >

Among planetary bodies in our solar system, Mars is singular in that it possesses all the raw materials required to support not only life, but a new branch of human civilization.  This uniqueness is illustrated most clearly if we contrast Mars with the Earth’s Moon, the most frequently cited alternative location for extraterrestrial human colonization. In contrast to the Moon, the Red Planet is rich in carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen, all in biologically readily accessible forms such as carbon… READ MORE >

We’re pleased to announce that the Mars Society’s group discussion page on Facebook has achieved an important milestone – reaching 10,000 members. Our social media presence on Facebook continues to be a great source for interesting discussion, commentary and postings on issues related to Mars exploration and planning for humans-to-Mars. If you’re not already a member of our Facebook group discussion page, please consider joining! https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheMarsSocietyUS/… READ MORE >

Members of Crew 156 stationed at the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station in southern Utah received a special phone call earlier today from, of all places, Earth orbit. NASA astronaut and physician Dr. Kjell Lindgren, currently serving on the International Space Station (ISS), reached out to the MDRS crew for a short chat. According to MDRS crew commander Ben Easter, Dr. Lindgren spoke with members of the crew about some of his experiences so far during his five months… READ MORE >

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Florence Maisch, the organization’s Volunteer Coordinator since September 2013, has been appointed to the newly-created post of Director of Volunteers & Chapters. As part of this new position, Mrs. Maisch will supervise volunteer recruitment and placement for the organization, as well as outreach and coordination between the Mars Society and its U.S. and international chapters. A resident of the Chicagoland area, Mrs. Maisch is a long-time proponent of Mars and space exploration,… READ MORE >

Good evening. The Mars Society is very glad to announce that the 2015-16 Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) field season has begun. Crew 155, a six-person team led by veteran commander Paul Bakken, arrived “on Mars” yesterday, beginning a two-week field rotation, which will involve daily work and research as part of the Mars Society’s Mars surface simulation program in Utah. Congratulations to the crew, and let’s make this a terrific year for our world-class MDRS program. For daily updates about… READ MORE >

The Mars Society and the Space Exploration Alliance (SEA), a growing network of major space advocacy groups, including the Planetary Society, the National Space Society and Explore Mars, will be organizing and hosting the 2016 Legislative Blitz on February 21-23 in Washington, D.C. The annual March-on-Capitol Hill event will bring dozens of volunteers, including Mars Society members, to our nation’s capital to help educate members of Congress and their staff on the importance of human and robotic space exploration, the… READ MORE >

The exploration and settlement of Mars is one of the great challenges of our time — a point strongly underlined by Monday’s announcement of the discovery of potentially life-holding liquid water on that planet — so it is not surprising that there have been many good novels investigating its possibilities. There have, however, been no worthwhile movies on the subject. True, there have been a fair number of big-budget extravaganzas that nominally involve Mars, but these have been simply a… READ MORE >

The Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), the world’s longest-serving Mars surface simulation habitat located in southern Utah, played host to a group of twelve international entertainment and science bloggers last weekend. Organized by 20th Century Fox, one of the largest U.S. film studios, the media visit to MDRS was set up as part of the company’s ongoing effort to promote the Ridley Scott-directed film, The Martian, which is due out in theaters October 2nd. During the two-day visit,… READ MORE >

Students to propose design concepts mission to open the path to the Red Planet Introduction The U.S. human spaceflight program is currently adrift. It needs a goal, and that goal should be sending explorers to Mars in our time. In order to help provide such direction and get a real humans to Mars program underway, the Mars Society is launching an international student engineering  contest to design the Gemini Mars mission, creating a plan for a two-person Mars flyby that… READ MORE >

During the 18th Annual International Mars Society Convention, held in mid-August in Washington, D.C., the Mars Society convened its Steering Committee and decided on a number of major initiatives for the coming year. These include: + The Mars Society will attempt to intersect the political ferment associated with the now unfolding U.S. presidential campaign to mobilize its American members and chapters to take every opportunity to meet all presidential hopefuls while they are out on the campaign trail, as well… READ MORE >

The 18th Annual International Mars Society Convention held at the Catholic University of America August 13-16, 2015 was a great success. Some 250 people attended to hear over 80 presentations covering all aspects of Mars exploration, including the latest robotic missions, human expeditions and settlement of the Red Planet and Mars habitability. By most accounts, the high points of the four-day conference were two dramatic debates conducted on the evenings of Thursday, August 13th and Friday, August 14th. The first was… READ MORE >

We’re pleased to announce that the Mars Society just reached the 100% funding mark for its Mars Desert Research Station GreenHab crowdfunding campaign! We were able to accomplish this important goal due to your generous support… three days early. Over 140 people from the U.S. and several other countries have donated – so far – to the online campaign. As with most crowdfunding efforts, campaign planners typically prepare stretch goals in case the desired mark is reached before the scheduled… READ MORE >

The Mars Society is pleased to announce that Lucinda Offer has been appointed as the organization’s new Executive Director, a position she held previously from 2009-2012. Mrs. Offer’s appointment was approved during a recent meeting of the Mars Society Steering Committee. A high school science teacher by profession, Mrs. Offer has been at the forefront of Mars advocacy for more than a decade, having served as director of public relations and a senior officer for international development for the Mars Society,… READ MORE >

A number of plenary talks, panel discussions and public debates from the 2015 International Mars Society Convention have been posted on the Mars Society’s YouTube page for viewing. If you were unable to attend the four-day conference in Washington, D.C., please consider watching the videos online. More will be added in the coming days. Thanks!… READ MORE >