Bush plans first manned mission to Mars

US President George W Bush is set to announce plans for the first manned mission to Mars.

And the ambitious plan is being spearheaded largely by a man with family connections in Cork and Kerry - NASA administrator Sean O’Keefe.

Buoyed by a successful landing on Mars by a robot explorer, Mr Bush will make a major announcement on space policy next week that envisions sending Americans back to the moon and ultimately to Mars, officials and congressional aides said yesterday.

Mr Bush’s fresh interest in space happens to coincide with an election year. A new bold space initiative, it is thought, could excite Americans.

But Bush does not intend to propose sending Americans to Mars anytime soon, instead he envisions preparing for a Mars expedition more than a decade from now, one administration official said.

The announcement will be made almost a year after the shuttle Columbia exploded on re-entering the atmosphere, sending NASA into a deep spell of despair.

Mr Bush is expected to propose a new lunar initiative leading to a permanent American presence on the moon, with a mission to Mars planned in the long term.

Speaking to reporters with Mr Bush in Florida, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said that after the Columbia tragedy Mr Bush made clear his desire for US space exploration to continue.

“The president directed his administration to do a comprehensive review of our space policy, including our priorities and the future direction of the programme, and the president will have more to say on it next week,” Mr McClellan said, declining to reveal any details in advance.

Holding a key position in the space plan is NASA administrator Sean O’Keefe, whose family comes from Fermoy, Co Cork. Mr O’Keefe was appointed by Mr Bush to restore credibility to an agency plagued by budget troubles, including billions of dollars in cost overruns at the international space station.

Vice President Dick Cheney was also involved in the policy development, along with other senior Bush advisers. The administration was said to see the initiative as an important national security measure and experts said it could lead to new technologies and potential new sources of energy.

Former President George Bush Snr had proposed a mission to Mars that was scuttled because of concerns over its high costs.

The younger Bush likewise faces budgetary constraints including a budget deficit expected to top $500 billion this year alone.

Experts say a moon mission could be done without a significant increase in the budget by spreading the cost over seven to 10 years.

“You can use the existing infrastructure and be back on the moon in five o 10 years with a modest investment. You don’t have to double the NASA budget,” said Paul Spudis, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Baltimore, Maryland.