Shifts of the first manned Mars mission?

There is an article under www.welt.de dating a possible manned Mars mission by NASA at 2037 earliest.

Up to now i am used to read of 2025 earliest. What about such shifts? are they going to become usual?

If so then Richard Speck and others will be right to say that a private manned Mars mission will be done long before a manned NASA mission.

What about it?



Dipl.-Volkswirt (bdvb) Augustin (Political Economist)

Unfortunately, I suspect that if Obama gets into office, anything beyond LEO and ISS support will get cut from NASA's budget. Even if McCain wins, it will be tough with a Democrat controlled congress.

You could run a Mars mission in 10 years but unless there is no support and therefore not even a basic technological evolution every claimed date is just speculation.

2037 could be derived from the point that in case the return to the moon will happen (which I doubt), NASA will have to do with that task as their primary mission until the end of the 2020s. When you then take the usual time to develop the necessary hardware you get a date somewhere around your quoted 2037.