World

Obama vows to send people to Mars by the 2030s

US president pledges to work with private companies to build new habitats for long-duration missions in deep space

Reuters October 11, 2016

Dark, narrow, 100 meter-long streaks on Mars inferred to have been formed by contemporary flowing water are seen in an image produced by NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the University of Arizona. PHOTO: REUTERS

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday vowed to help send people to Mars within the next 15 years, pledging to work with private companies to "to build new habitats that can sustain and transport astronauts on long-duration missions in deep space."

"We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America's story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time," Obama said in an opinion piece for CNN posted to its website.