Obama: The US Government Planning To Help People Relocate To The Mars By The 2030s

Image of Mars 

The US President President, Barack Obama on Tuesday said the government will be partnering with private companies to send people to Mars in the next 15 years.

The aim is to build new habitat that can sustain and transport astronauts on long duration missions in deep space. He did not specify which private companies the government would be working with on the Mars missions

'We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America's story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time,' Obama wrote in the opinion piece. 

'The next step is to reach beyond the bounds of Earth's orbit. I'm excited to announce that we are working with our commercial partners to build new habitats that can sustain and transport astronauts on long-duration missions in deep space. 

'These missions will teach us how humans can live far from Earth - something we'll need for the long journey to Mars.' 

Traveling to Mars isn't just about exploring one more frontier, Obama wrote. He says that travel to Mars, like the Apollo missions before it, will help inspire a whole new general of scientists and engineers to 'keep America on the cutting edge'. 

 We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America's story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time.

President Obama  

'If we make our leadership in space even stronger in this century than it was in the last, we won't just benefit from related advances in energy, medicine, agriculture and artificial intelligence, we'll benefit from a better understanding of our environment and ourselves,' he said. 

In the essay, President Obama wrote of his own memories as a child, waving a flag and welcoming astronauts back to Hawaii with his grandfather. 

He hopes that the groundwork he's laid towards Mars missions will lead to similar moments with his own, future grandchildren. 

'Someday, I hope to hoist my own grandchildren onto my shoulders. We'll still look to the stars in wonder, as humans have since the beginning of time. But instead of eagerly awaiting the return of our intrepid explorers, we'll know that because of the choices we make now, they've gone to space not just to visit, but to stay - and in doing so, to make our lives better here on Earth,' Obama wrote. Source