Exploring Mars A Waste Of Money?

[Sean Hayden]

I don't know, but have you noticed in Pappa's avatar--the romantic river rats--that the seemingly empty space between them is actually none other than Zoidberg? -who knows what he's up to-

[klr]

Exploring Mars now is little different to exploring Antarctica a century ago - differing only by degree in fact.

[Jason]

I love the idea of space exploration, but I must admit to being more than a little ambivalent towards the robotic exploration of Mars. Unmanned missions just don't capture the imagination of the public in the same way either leading to lessening public support for the funding of space exploration.

I'd really like to see more low earth orbit projects developed commercially for the public. Not just paying 20m for a ride in an old Vostok missile either, I mean the development of space tourism made accessible for the masses. International Space Hotel - Zero gravity orgy anyone?

[Atheist-Lite]

I love the idea of space exploration, but I must admit to being more than a little ambivalent towards the robotic exploration of Mars. Unmanned missions just don't capture the imagination of the public in the same way either leading to lessening public support for the funding of space exploration.

I'd really like to see more low earth orbit projects developed commercially for the public. Not just paying 20m for a ride in an old Vostok missile either, I mean the development of space tourism made accessible for the masses. International Space Hotel - Zero gravity orgy anyone?

I don't believe in tourism on earth. Bloody tourists mob this place every summer. Hopefully they'll be kept from going to space by fear after one of Virgins flying coffins does it's cartwheel into the ocean.

[Rum]

I am a supporter of the idea of exploration, curiosity and inquisitiveness for its own sake and I think this mission is just astonishing.

But what next? A manned mission? Sure, but what after that? I can't imagine mass migration or anything like that. Those science fiction scenarios were great but I suspect they were fantasy. Some people seem to see humanity's future and its salvation in space, but it doesn't seem realistic to me.

Best we try to limit the damage at home before it is too late. If it isn't already.

[klr]

I am a supporter of the idea of exploration, curiosity and inquisitiveness for its own sake and I think this mission is just astonishing.

But what next? A manned mission? Sure, but what after that? I can't imagine mass migration or anything like that. Those science fiction scenarios were great but I suspect they were fantasy. Some people seem to see humanity's future and its salvation in space, but it doesn't seem realistic to me.

Best we try to limit the damage at home before it is too late. If it isn't already.

Mars has as about as much land area as Earth, but you're right - humans will never settle there en masse. But Mars is still a huge prize, with (likely) enormous mineral resources.

[Jason]

Just over a century ago much of the world thought heavier than air flight was just fantasy.

I think manned space exploration, and even more importantly, accessible space exploration and travel for the masses will help humanity overcome its tribalism and territorial feuding in a way I don't see anything else doing. Besides, this little rock only has about 4 billion years of battery life left.. if we survive at all, we're eventually going to have to find another one.

[colubridae]

Obvious where to get help....

[Rum]

Just over a century ago much of the world thought heavier than air flight was just fantasy.

I think manned space exploration, and even more importantly, accessible space exploration and travel for the masses will help humanity overcome its tribalism and territorial feuding in a way I don't see anything else doing. Besides, this little rock only has about 4 billion years of battery life left.. if we survive at all, we're eventually going to have to find another one.

Sadly I don't see a smidgen of evidence that this is the likely outcome, much as I would love to see it working out this way.

[Atheist-Lite]

Just over a century ago much of the world thought heavier than air flight was just fantasy.

I think manned space exploration, and even more importantly, accessible space exploration and travel for the masses will help humanity overcome its tribalism and territorial feuding in a way I don't see anything else doing. Besides, this little rock only has about 4 billion years of battery life left.. if we survive at all, we're eventually going to have to find another one.

Sadly I don't see a smidgen of evidence that this is the likely outcome, much as I would love to see it working out this way.

Extinction is most likely. The hubris of the transient space age will soon be lost as the oil runs out and climate change destroys the coastal cities. As men slowly return to the stone age way of life they will once again ponder the stars and declare them to be spirits or some such. The return to ignorance will become in time a return to true apemen and finally back to the trees. Never again will so much easily obtainable energy provide the necessary anti-entropic properties to build a space-faring civilization. Never again will animals leave this world. All is lost. Space is silent for this reason. Space is silent and we are dead.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

Learning new stuff is NEVER a waste of anything!

When James Clerk Maxwell derived his equations of elecromagnetism from the work of Faraday, Ampere and Ørsted, he could have no idea that his insights would lead directly to Einstein's Theories of Relativity and thence to the maths necessary to keep GPS satellites tuned!

When man went to the moon, were they aware that the longest lasting legacy of that effort would be Teflon and Velcro?

When I found out that Dave Harrison was shagging Jim Broxtowe's wife, did I immediately make the link with a long-term, second income from blackmail? (Well, OK, yes I did! But my point is that you never know where a little bit of knowledge might lead!)

[JimC]

Although I love SF, and have a romantic attachment to the idea of human space exploration, on a purely rational basis, a manned trip to Mars (or even back to the moon) would be a waste of resources at the moment. NASA has shown clearly that sophisticated exploration and data gathering can be achieved by robotic vehicles, at a fraction of the cost of sending humans. Go robots!

Except that one of the main points of space exploration is to send humans there. It's not so much a means, but an end.

A Moon base and regular space flight to and from the Moon are necessary first steps in this process. The Moon is very close compared to any of the planets, and since we are pretty good at low Earth orbit stuff now, the next logical step is to master the Moon and Lagrange points around the Earth. That is why the cancellation of the Constellation program was such a monumental blunder and shortsighted, myopic "pennywise and pound foolish" mistake. I fucking hate those who participated in the cancellation of that program. We'd be less than 5 years away from seeing humans back on the Moon right now.

The Mars mission is wonderful. But, we need to double-down and add to the robotics programs a mission to Mars as well as a mission to the moon to build a base. Won't happen, because Romney is as fucking shortsighted in this regard as Obama was. Nobody cares about the space program, unfortunately, because most of the public thinks it's a waste of money.

For those posting here opposing the space program -- think about that. You're in line with what most of the majority of the public thinks is right. How many times has the majority of the public ever been right about a matter of science? Most of them can barely add and subtract, let alone puzzle out the long term benefits to mankind of these missions.... believe me...you're better off siding with the minority on this one. The smart, sciencey folks support the space program...

I'm certainly not opposing the space program. I want a good, solid human presence in orbit (with involvement from private enterprise), a professional, on-going program of sophisticated unmanned exploration of the solar system, and an eventual extension of this into manned exploration. But I don't think a push for rapid manned exploration is wise or prudent at the moment.

[pErvinalia]

Proof that life exists elsewhere than on Earth, a waste of money? Fuck that! It ranks second only to an advanced, intelligent race with no concept of religion on my list of kicks in the eye to worn-out, antiquated belief systems!

Plus, if life was found on Mars, it would significantly help our understanding of how life formed and developed here. We don't have a lot to go on because of the paucity of evidence on Earth.

Might even be another nail in the coffin for religion.

[Horwood Beer-Master]

...I'd really like to see more low earth orbit projects developed commercially for the public. Not just paying 20m for a ride in an old Vostok missile either, I mean the development of space tourism made accessible for the masses. International Space Hotel - Zero gravity orgy anyone?

Now despite being a total space advocate in most regards, all this low-earth-orbit space-tourism crap leaves me "meh". If this is space travel, then pressing my face against my bedroom window is a foreign holiday.

It might be useful if it raises some funds towards proper human colonisation of space, but for it's own sake I couldn't give much of a toss whether space tourism is developed or not.

...I can't imagine mass migration or anything like that...

No, a Mars colony would mostly have to grow from small beginnings, and not by immigration. Stocks of frozen embryos from Earth could be a good way to allow the colony to grow up to a decent size without falling foul of inbreeding dangers.
The humans living on a Mars colony (or Jovian Moon colony, or asteroid colony e.t.c...) would be their on behalf of all of us, these new pockets of humanity would be about about adding to what's on Earth already, not moving it all from Earth.

...humans will never settle there en masse. But Mars is still a huge prize, with (likely) enormous mineral resources.

Urrgh! Stop dragging this down to such practical considerations. It's not about mineral resources. It's not really even about long-term species survival (although that certainly does come onto it).

If as Carl Sagan expressed it we are the universe made manifest, able to experience itself and attempt to figure itself out, then human beings born on and living their lives on Mars, represent the universe seeing itself from a whole new perspective.

Living and growing-up on Mars (or anywhere else not on Earth) would be a whole new experience for human beings, and thus in a very real sense would represent a whole new way of being a human being. The more we get out there a make more places into homes for humans, the more new ways of being a human would be discovered. And via radio signals bouncing back and forth through the cosmos, we will all to some degree or other share in these new experiences and perspectives (both on ourselves and on the universe we are a part of), they will creep into and reprogramme our culture often in subtle ways that we don't even notice straight away as they're happening.

...I want a good, solid human presence in orbit (with involvement from private enterprise)...

Personally I don't see what real good private sector involvement adds to proceedings here, other than a misguided (and I'd bet ultimately futile) attempt to minimise taxpayer costs.

...But I don't think a push for rapid manned exploration is wise or prudent at the moment.

But as I tried to indicate in my previous post however far along we come, the case that 'now is not the right time' can (and if we let it, will) always be made. I still say that if anyone, anywhere at any time ever asks the question "when is the time ripe to go to Mars?" the answer is always "now".

[Jason]

...I'd really like to see more low earth orbit projects developed commercially for the public. Not just paying 20m for a ride in an old Vostok missile either, I mean the development of space tourism made accessible for the masses. International Space Hotel - Zero gravity orgy anyone?

Now despite being a total space advocate in most regards, all this low-earth-orbit space-tourism crap leaves me "meh". If this is space travel, then pressing my face against my bedroom window is a foreign holiday.

It might be useful if it raises some funds towards proper human colonisation of space, but for it's own sake I couldn't give much of a toss whether space tourism is developed or not.

Funds and public interest I would hope. People flock to attractions like Disney Land, which has no attraction for me, but it does bring in a lot of cash for the city of Orlando.