00:00www.mesmerism.info
00:30And in a few months, a new group of astronauts will make the journey.
00:34It's one of humanity's most ambitious undertakings.
00:37The direct result of a decades-long global space race
00:41and of a joint mission created to extend human exploration
00:45to the farthest reaches of our solar system.
00:57This is the story of Ares, our greatest adventure.
01:06Behold, the Hermes.
01:10The most complex and expensive machine ever built.
01:15We only built one, and it remains harbored in low-Earth orbit between missions.
01:22Astronauts rely on shuttles to travel up to Hermes,
01:25and from there, they set sail on a perfect controlled cruise.
01:31But make no mistake, this is no easy journey.
01:36The trip to Mars is as dangerous and challenging as anything we've ever tried.
01:42The average journey checks in at 140 million miles.
01:47And throughout the trip, Hermes and its crew are bombarded by cosmic radiation
01:52that would irreversibly damage their DNA, if not for the ship's protection.
01:57And if that isn't enough, solar flares, asteroids, and meteoroids
02:03pose a catastrophic threat to the mission.
02:07One major strike could leave Hermes stranded in the hostile environment of space
02:12with no hope of rescue.
02:14Provided everything goes as planned, the Ares 3 crew will arrive in Martian orbit
02:21124 days later, ready to descend to the surface.
02:26Once on Mars, they will spend a month in a habitat designed to protect them
02:31from low oxygen, high radiation, dust storms, and temperatures that can dip to 100 degrees below zero.
02:39Despite those challenges, the crew will thoroughly investigate the planet's biological history
02:45and its potential to cultivate and sustain life.
02:49Depending on what they learn, StarTalk of the Future may be posting to you
02:54from a permanent self-sustaining Martian colony,
02:58examining a new adventure that will take us even deeper into the stars above.
03:04Earth, a magnificent world to which we owe our creation.
03:09no longer seems destined to be our final resting place.
03:15Our adventure is just beginning.
03:22On behalf of StarTalk, we'd like to wish the Ares 3 crew a safe journey.
03:27Godspeed, Hermes.
03:28And as always, keep looking up.
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