Armstrong: Mars trip will be easier
Human flight to Red Planet 20 years away at the least
A manned mission to Mars probably will be easier compared to the struggle that led to the Apollo 11 lunar landing in 1969, said Armstrong. RELATED YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS Neil Armstrong Space Programs National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Aerospace Engineering or or Create Your Own
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- Neil Armstrong said Tuesday that a human expedition to Mars won't happen for at least 20 years, but might be easier than the trip that made him the first person to step onto the moon in 1969.
Armstrong said scientists must develop better onboard spacecraft technology and stronger shields to block space radiation before people can travel to Mars.
"It will certainly be 20 years or more before that happens," the former astronaut said at a global leadership forum in Malaysia.
"It will be expensive," he said. "It will take a lot of energy and a complex spacecraft. But I suspect that -- even though the various questions are difficult and many -- they are not as difficult and many as those we faced when we started the Apollo (space program) in 1961."
Armstrong, 75, who seldom appears at public functions or grants interviews, commanded NASA's Apollo 11 moon mission in 1969.
He left the space program in 1971 to teach aeronautical engineering at the University of Cincinnati in the U.S. state of Ohio.
The current U.S. space initiative envisions sending more astronauts to the moon in the next 10-15 years, and ultimately to Mars and beyond, though no firm date has been announced.
It is widely believed that the project will cost hundreds of billions of dollars.
Hailing technological breakthroughs that led to space travel in the 20th century, Armstrong said setting foot on the moon was "a wonderful feeling" -- especially because he'd thought the landing had only a 50 percent chance of a success.
"I was elated, ecstatic and extremely surprised that we were successful," Armstrong said.
At a global leadership forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong said that a manned mission to Mars is at least 20 years away, but that such a mission will be easier to accomplish than the Apollo missions.

"It will certainly be 20 years or more before that a manned Mars mission happens," the former astronaut said.

"It will be expensive, it will take a lot of energy and a complex spacecraft. But I suspect that, even though the various questions are difficult and many, they are not as difficult and many as those we faced when we started the Apollo Program in 1961," he continued.

Armstrong, who is 75, is known for seldom appearing at public events and for not granting interviews. He commanded the Apollo 11 moon mission in 1969, and was the first man to set foot upon the Moon. He left the space program in 1971 to teach aeronautical engineering at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio.  

The current United States space programme plans to send astronauts back to the moon in 15 years, and then to Mars some time after that. It is expected to cost hundreds of billions of dollars.