NASA Is Deciding Where To Go Next In The Solar System

Where should we explore next in the Solar System ? That ’s what NASA is decide at the moment , with Titan , Enceladus , Venus and more up for consideration .

This is part of NASA’sNew Frontiers programme , which will apportion up to $ 1 billion to one delegation . NASA has received 12 proposal for mission , with a extract carry in 2019 , and a launch in 2024 .

“ New Frontiers is about do the biggest motion in our Solar System today , building on previous military mission to go forward to push the frontier of geographic expedition , ” enunciate Thomas Zurbuchen , Associate Administrator for NASA ’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington , in astatement .

“ We ’re looking forward to critique these exciting investigation and moving forward with our next bold mission of uncovering . ”

There have been three former New Frontiers delegacy . These are the New Horizons Mission to Pluto ( launched in 2006 ) , the Juno mission to Jupiter ( set up in 2011 ) , and the OSIRIS - REx mission ( launched in 2016 ) that is presently on its means to the asteroid Bennu .

This clip around , there are six mission theme being considered . Two of these are found around sampling returns to either a comet or the south perch of the Moon . return samples to Earth is exceedingly significant for scientific analysis . Other themes are a probe to Saturn , a mission to Jupiter ’s Trojan asteroids , or a space vehicle to chitchat and perchance set ashore on Venus .

Perhaps most enticingly though , NASA also enquire for ideas about delegation to sea reality , specifically Titan and Enceladus . We ’ve already let a mission move to Europa in the 2020s , call in the Europa Clipper , but all three see like promising locations for habitability thanks to their underground oceans . A commission to one of these earth could aid us answer whether we are alone in the Solar System or not .

While NASA does not release details about single foreign mission proposals , Popular Mechanicsreported that three of them were missions to Saturn . One would dive into its ambience , another would possibly land on Titan , and the third would sample the special K of water disgorge from Enceladus .

Each missionary station is no doubt exciting in its own right wing . It ’s a disgrace we ca n’t do them all .