"The IRB (Independent Review Board) has concluded that the current baseline program with launches in 2026 and a budget of $3 billion is not consistent with previous Category A Priority 1 missions," the panel concluded in its 79-page report.
IRB chairman David Thompson, former head of Orbital ATK, told a press conference on Tuesday that NASA and the ESA needed a budget of between $3.8 billion and $4.4 billion to carry out the mission - almost 50 percent higher than the previously accepted figure - and that it should be delayed for up to two years from 2026 to 2028.
Under the ambitious plans for the joint NASA-ESA mission, three separate missions would be required to be sent to Mars, the first of which, carrying the Perseverance Rover ground vehicle, has just passed the halfway mark in its voyage to the Red Planet.
We're ready to undertake a new campaign to return the first samples from Mars. This groundbreaking partnership with @ESA will build on decades of scientific advancements and technical progress in Mars exploration: https://t.co/Yrc2Gy1P6H pic.twitter.com/FEifWiYM3U
— NASA (@NASA) November 10, 2020
Earlier this year, scientists claimed to have analyzed the minimum number of settlers required for a colony on Mars to be able to survive between supply deliveries. The approximate number is 110.
