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Lockheed Martin Space Systems; Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems; Orbital ATK; and Space Systems/Loral—took four months to appraise the need for Mars telecommunications and global high-resolution imaging as well as assess possible added scientific instruments, optical communications and the use of solar-electric propulsion.

The engineering solution may be for NeMO to use solar-electric propulsion to turn around and fly back to Earth hauling an entire separate spacecraft that carries the goods from Mars, he says, or it could tote a special-purpose entry vehicle that’s topped off with Mars regolith and rock for drop-off here at home.

Its stated purpose is to test and develop new technologies for spaceflight, such as NASA’s Space Launch System heavy-lift rocket, its Orion deep-space crew capsule and an advanced solar-electric propulsion engine suitable for long-haul cargo trips.

"We need the technologies for highly efficient, sustainable human exploration approaches for mars, where we use solar-electric propulsion to carry cargo and use chemical or other high thrust propulsion for crews," Gates said.

An uncrewed solar-electric propulsion vehicle would capture the booty and tug it back to a lunar orbit, where astronauts launched separately could explore it.