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I thought the biggest concern about launch window was journey time? And that would only matter for a crewed mission. I didn't think fuel mattered because it wou

I thought the biggest concern about launch window was journey time? And that would only matter for a crewed mission. I didn't think fuel mattered because it would probably be close for either mission profile- burn to get up to speed, shutdown and coast for months, then any orbit corrections and slowdowns as the Mars approach nears. It's not like the engine is burning for the whole trip, and they'll be using solar for internal instruments. Or am I misunderstanding?

zardo 10y ago
You are, the total energy required for a transfer varies considerably depending on the phasing of the planets. This is mars->Earth, but you get the idea. http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/images/mission/Mars2103PorkChop.png http://www.projectrho.com/public_html/rocket/images/mission/...