Nuclear Thermal Rocket - Arc Jet Integrated System Model

With the development of commercial space flight and the progression of the commercial crew program, many low earth orbit activities are transitioning to the private sector.This will soon include transportation of astronauts to and from the international space station.As this transition takes place, NASA is becoming more focused on deep space exploration.There are many different concepts and destinations for deep space exploration that have been discussed in the ongoing public discussion.Some examples include missions utilizing Lagrange points, and visiting or recovering an asteroid.The destination which has long since captured the imagination is Mars.There are several different concepts concerning the future exploration of Mars, including concepts involving missions to the moons Phobos and Deimos.Manned missions to Mars are very ambitious and will require the development of many technologies and thorough logistical planning.Deep space exploration missions, such as missions to Mars, face many technological challenges that must be considered and resolved far in advance of any mission.For this reason, current technology development is critical to achieving NASA roadmap goals for deep space exploration in our life time.Many of these challenges are in regards to the development of propulsion systems that can meet mission requirements.The propulsion system for the transfer vehicle that will carry astronauts and equipment to Mars must meet a number of requirements, including operating as efficiently as possible and providing enough thrust for the astronauts to reach Mars in a reasonable amount of time.