We have landed on a comet. What's next? The landing of the Philae lander - on a comet flying at a speed of 135,000 km / h - marked the beginning of a new chapter in space exploration.
It will take many years to master the discoveries that he made, but now space engineers are asking the inevitable question: what next? Let's look at five of the most exotic missions that space agencies dream of - including capturing an asteroid, diving under the ice of one of Jupiter's moons, and even the prospect of traveling to a distant star.
Float in the clouds of Venus
Often referred to as Earth's evil counterpart, Venus is the same size as our home planet, but contains a toxic atmosphere that casts acid rain from the skies. Nevertheless, Jeffrey Landis and the NASA team investigated the possibility of sending astronauts into orbit the planet.
According to Landis's plan, people can generally live in floating balls in the upper atmosphere, above the poisonous clouds. In them, the air pressure and temperature by the conditions resemble the earth's surface - therefore it will be possible to maintain comfortable conditions inside the balloon, which will fly without any fuel.
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Sailing in the seas of Titan
Titan has a weather system similar to Earth's - except that the clouds are not collected by water, but methane, which then spills onto the earth, forming seas and lakes on the surface.
Two missions have been proposed to study one of these extraterrestrial seas, one from NASA and the other from the European Planetary Science Congress.
Needless to say, problems are rampant: thick clouds impede the penetration of sunlight, so nuclear fuel will have to be used. Navigating viscous seas will require innovative forms of movement, perhaps even some form of drilling through fluid.
Unfortunately, NASA has suspended the development of this mission, and the EPOC plans also remain in their infancy.
Diving into the ice of Europe
Perhaps a more promising target is the substrate of Europa, Jupiter's moon. In the far reaches of the solar system, the sun brings almost no heat, but under the ice there may be warm water heated by tectonic activity.
To get there, you need a "cryorobot" capable of breaking through kilometers of ice. NASA's modern design project, called Valkyrie, works by heating water with a nuclear source and injecting it into ice. As the ice melts, the Valkyrie collects water and continues the process.
The small prototype, tested this year in Alaska, was able to find its way through 8 kilometers of ice in a year, after which the project received serious funding for further development. With any luck, this project could provide us with the first evidence of extraterrestrial life: life could nest in the warm waters of Europe.
Catch an asteroid
If the task of landing on a comet was ambitious, then NASA's mission to redirect an asteroid is generally absurd in the good sense of the word. The plan is to identify, capture and send the asteroid into orbit around our moon, where astronauts can reach it and take samples.
Similar to the Philae mission, analyzing these space rocks will provide us with new insights into the origin of the solar system - as well as help develop technologies that could potentially divert an asteroid heading towards Earth.
So far, NASA claims to have six asteroids as possible targets. How to catch the asteroid has not yet been decided, but possibilities include wrapping it in an inflatable bag. If all goes according to plan, NASA predicts that astronauts will be able to explore the asteroid in 15 years.
Interstellar travel
Forget from the moons of Jupiter or distant asteroids. How about a trip to Alpha Centauri? People born today could witness this giant leap for humanity during their lifetime if the 100 Year Starship project succeeds.
A joint venture between NASA and the American Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), 100YSS aims to create a platform that will allow humans to travel to another star over the next hundred years. They look at every possible mechanism at the moment - including hypothetical antimatter propulsion - and strategies to overcome the effects of long travel on the human body.
However, the chances of success seem infinitesimal, given modern science. But 150 years ago, even landing on the moon seemed incredible; then people didn't even fly on airplanes. After all, Christopher Nolan's latest film may not be all that fiction.