NASA said Friday that they are now looking at the possibility of sending a crew on the first launch of the deep-space Orion spacecraft they hope to send to Mars one day.
During a midday teleconference, NASA officials discussed the feasibility plans of adding a crew to Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.
William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator of NASA’s human explorations and operation mission directorate in Washington, said they would be looking at a “big, crisp list of all the things we would physically have to change” on the vehicle in order to accommodate astronauts.
The feasibility study will also determine how much more time and funding would be required for the mission, should it include a crew.
The main priority, he said, would be to ensure it can be done while limiting the potential risks to the crew’s safety.
The Space Launch System is expected to be the most powerful rocket ever to fly. It’s being built for travel to the moon and to Mars.
Last week, NASA asked Gerstenmaier to initiate the study, which began on Feb. 17 and is expected to be completed in early spring.
With files from The Associated Press
