First person on Mars is 'likely to be a woman'

The first person to set foot on Mars is likely to be a woman, NASA has revealed.

Jim Bridenstine, administrator at NASA, revealed the exciting plans on the radio show ‘Science Friday’ this week.

NASA has previously revealed plans to send humans to Mars by the mid-2030s, but until now, the crew has remained a mystery.

But speaking on the show, Mr Bridenstine teased that a woman is ‘likely to be’ the first person to step foot on the red planet.

Excitingly, Mr Bridenstine also added that a female astronaut would ‘absolutely’ be included on NASA’s next trip to the moon.

The news comes shortly after NASA revealed that it will have its first all-female spacewalk on March 29 during which time astronauts Anne McClain and Christina Koch will float in space.

Speaking to space.com, Stephanie Schierholz, a spokesperson for NASA, said: “We feel lucky that it [the all-female spacewalk] just sort of happened to be in Women's History Month.”

While astronauts have been predominantly male in the past, 34% of NASA’s astronauts are now female.

Mr Bridenstine added: “NASA is committed to making sure we have a broad and diverse set of talent and we're looking forward to the first woman on the moon.”