Man on Mars: The next giant leap for mankind?

40 years after the first manned moon landing piloted by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, NASA's dream of sending astronauts in Mars remains to be what it is... a dream.

NASA researcher Bret Drake admitted that human voyage to Mars is one of the top goals in the future for the world-renowned space agency. A space mission in Mars is still a big challenge that goes beyond the current technological capabilities of NASA. However, they are doing constant research and studies and remains firm on accomplishing their near-impossible goal. According to experts at Houston, there are two options for propulsion in Mars -- first via nuclear thermal rocket and the other via chemical engine. A nuclear thermal rocket is probably the most efficient and safest, would use a nuclear reactor to heat gas and blast it out the nozzle to generate thrust. On the other hand, a chemical engine, used primarily in space shuttles is the most proven way of space launch. Similarly, NASA laid out the entire MARS exploration plan citing that they are looking at Ares V rocket, the most powerful rocket ever built to launch equipment to Mars. The team of explorers numbering to about six and deemed as experts in their respective fields would stay in the red planet for about 500 days. NASA also took note of the possible mental challenges once the team step foot in carbon dioxide-prevalent planet. Living in a hostile environment could definitely pose a great challenge the psyches of Mars explorers. Perhaps, a space mission to Mars will escalate our understanding of life beyond Earth.