>>13347638We could have sent people to mars in the 70s if we really wanted to. The issue is the cost factor. Getting enough shit up there to go to the moon is a struggle. Getting enough up there for a trip to mars is a whole other animal. No resupply, no new replacement parts, the long stay means you need to add new things for these people too.
So we need to bring extra space for those extra needs, replacement parts to key systems, a ton of food, not to mention the ability to potentially turn back early on without having to make the 20 month trip is something goes wrong in the first month. That's a lot of fuel.
