image credit: NASAMillionaire space tourist Dennis Tito and his partners have had to tell questioners repeatedly that they're not 'crazy' to think they can launch a man and a woman to Mars and back - but if the Inspiration Mars Foundation's 'Mission for America' succeeds, it may well be because it's just crazy enough.
The plan doesn't involve landing on Mars. It will be a 501-day non-stop Mars flyby. The rocket and crew capsule will be ready to launch on January 5, 2018, when the planets literally align. A launch on or around that date would result in a straightforward, no-fuss trajectory that would come within 100 miles of Mars' backside, and bring the spacecraft back to Earth on May 21, 2019.
