Mars One Delays Its Human Mission Project To Colonize The Red Planet

British-Dutch organization Mars One has reportedly admitted that its planned project of installing a community of humans on the Red Planet will be delayed by several years. The consortium added that that its first manned Mars mission will take place around 2031, instead of the initially targeted 2026. Additionally, the organizations initial target for sending the first unmanned mission to Mars has also been delayed by four years, setting the launch time to 2022.

According to a Time report, the organization is under a new financial strategy to raise more money. "Mars One can only implement the mission to Mars if we can afford it - and we need investments to get going," said Mars One CEO Bas Lansdorp. "Of course the whole Mars One team would have preferred to be able to stick to the original schedule, but this new timeline significantly improves our odds of successfully achieving this mission roadmap."

Science news website Phys.org has reported that the delay is linked to Mars One's sale to InFin Innovative Finance AG, a Swiss financial services company. At the moment, the consortium comprises of two entities, British public limited company Mars One Ventures and the Dutch not-for-profit Mars One Foundation.

Incidentally, Mars One's project aims to send human settlers on one way trips to the Red Planet to eventually colonize it and create a permanent human settlement. The project, which is to be funded by a reality show partly, had 200,000 volunteers from 140 countries signing up for it when it was first announced.

Now the list of probable colonizers has gone down to 100, out of whom only 24 candidates will make the cut for the seven month no return journey to Mars. The selected candidates will leave Earth in six teams comprising of four members, who will have the task of finding water, producing oxygen and cultivating their own food on reaching the Red Planet.