Intersections and Opportunities in Human Exploration, Science and Technology Identified in the Mars Program Planning Group

Abstract

The Mars Program Planning Group (MPPG) was chartered in March 2012 by the NASA Associate Administrator for Science, in collaboration with NASA’s Associate Administrator for Human Exploration and Operations, Chief Scientist, and Chief Technologist. The MPPG developed foundations for a program-level architecture for robotic exploration of Mars that is consistent with the President’s challenge of sending humans to Mars in the decade of the 2030’s, yet remains responsive to the primary scientific goals of the 2011 NRC Decadal Survey for Planetary Science. The MPPG also delineated potential mission scenarios, including several possible options, in sufficient detail for NASA to be able to select high pay-off mission(s) beginning with the 2018 launch opportunity. This effort, which included members from the science, human exploration, and space technology directorates, provided an overall framework for Mars exploration planning and several options for the next strategic Mars Exploration Program mission to follow the Mars Science Laboratory.