New Mars Forums

I believe Dr Zubrin put the cost of Mars Direct at $50B. Assuming he and space elevator builders are equally optimistic, then Mars Direct would cost more.

I believe that a space elevator could be built in 10-15 years, but I don't think it will. Most of the population is very ignorant about such matters and won't believe it's possible and therefore won't support funding it.

The aerospace industry and its lobbiest are very entrenched in our space program. I don't think they'd like a space elevator anymore than Enron wants solar powered cars (or Fox wants quality television)
:laugh:

Thanks for the link SpaceNut, and quite revealing. Kerry and my own opinions on those 15 questions match up very nicely. 

Well Good Morning Cobra, that was fast! 

Don't get me wrong, a 'vision thing' is better than nothing, but not by much. My beef with Bush is that he couldn't have picked a worse time to share his 'visions'. If he could have made his speech a month after Columbia it would have had much more impact and support than it did two years later.

I will never understand why our soilders need the BEST equipment to safeguard their lives and NASA is using defective out-of-date hardware that no one should be using in their right minds.

You could argue that it has died under Bush actually. We haven't had a flight since the Columbia accident and all Bush did was shake his head and say 'tragic'.

Once again, people don't be fooled by republicans using faulty logic. Challengers for the presidency rarely have any position on space becuase they almost always come from a state with no interest in it. Difference is, this election, we also have an incumbent that has no record to stand by....

Hey WK/SS1 enthusiasts! Here's a link to some important developments with NASA's X-37 projects and Rutan's team.

http://space.com/news/nasa_x37_040914.h … 40914.html

Pretty interesting stuff eh? Makes ya wonder if phase II will be an air breathing hybrid rocket.

Or we could send a basic package and let the colonist do this themselves. America wasn't built with subways, deep space rockets, or next generation space shuttles. It was a slow step-by-step process. Mars offers us the chance to send a small number of ships and build a civilization from there. In short, you don't need this mass exodus of supplies.

Well all I can add to this is that it is already happening. Oppertunists have been salivating for years over the prospect of making money in space. Now we have people like Rutan, Bigelow, and that Falcon guy (what's his name again?) taking a stab at making money in space.

Remember an important fact, space need not make a profit, just break even. Companies that aren't going to lose their butt in a space investment will do so because it is good PR and advertising.

Or just develop cheap disposables like the Falcon 

Hey, like my dad used to say...
"Son, nothing beats free! Don't ever let anyone make you feel bad for using something you got or found for free."

And no he wasnt a trash truck driver....

Nice post Cobra. And you didn't sound all gloom and doom like I do when i say basically the same thing.

History has shown us that countries are a lot like living organisms. They struggle to find a niche at first. Then they have to deal with their parents. Then when they reach maturity they begin to decay. Somewhere before the decay sets in completely, they also usually start colonizes. Look at England and the US's relationship for a good analogy of what I mean.

Some people argue that the decay of a pampered society is what drives the colonizing effort and I tend to agree. America is very much like England was when it colonized us. Leader of the world, strong conservative religious ties, and an economy that is spoiling its citizens.

I feel Cobra's question of who will settle the new frontier to be somewhat mute. The decadent don't want new horizons to explore as they are very much wrapped up in themselves and could care less. Now a few will likely find themselves along for the ride because many of the most decadent are born into wealth.

It is a fact of nature that struggle defines us. Without challenges we shrivel up and die (mentally if not physically). Nations too need to grow or they stagnate.

However, the real question is 'is it already too late?'. I fear we may have missed the boat so to speak when it comes to creating our own colony. Academic performance in the US hit its peak shortly after the Apollo program and has been sliding since. We now 'import' a substancial amount of our learned people as fewer and fewer college graduates are prepared to be leaders in their respective feilds.

This could conceivably change should we find something we need on the Moon like helium-3 for instance. We still have a lot of economic muscle to toss around and that can make a huge difference. I personally believe it will be China taking the lead in any colonizing effort. Their lifestyles of conservation and population control make them ideally suited for frontier life. They are also not spoiled like most Americans. Imagine China granting passage on its ships to the Moon for hardworking Chinesse willing to work 20 years to pay for their trip and the freedom to have many children and believe what they want.

Oh yes......the Chinesse are coming!! (going?)  ???

Oh ok, I thought someone had something horrible hehe. Glad it's just a technical problem. Anyone read that article where Kerry said NASA isn't getting enough funding?

I believe that dead space hardware is fair game under any laws. When stop funding a program and it isn't producing scientific data anymore it's junk right? Anyone can use junk, I get furniture from curbside trash piles all the time.