POLL: Should NASA Send Astronauts Back to the Moon?

[ZenGalacticore]

Jim you crack me up! I still think of Uncle Fester saying what you type.

I'm on Starider's trajectory here. We need to keep researching and developing better, more efficient, and ultimately cheaper forms of propulsion during the next few decades. We'll learn incalculable knowledge, know-how, expertise and experience by indefinitely living and working on the Moon.

She's (the Moon) part of the Earth/Moon system-obvy- she's close, she's there, and we need to go to her! And when the public begins to see the benefits-both scientific and commercial- that will accrue from the inevitable expanding and exponentiating technology that most certainly will result from our efforts, then we can more easily build a case with said public for going to Mars.

When I think of all the Trillions of dollars that America and Russia have spent on weapons preparing to blow each other to smithereens(in order to not blow each other up) it makes me somewhat melancholy. Had we spent that money on space R&D, and space exploration and utilization, we'd probably already be on Mars, mining the Asteroids, and have orbiting colonies in L-5 and elsewhere.

What a creature is Man.

[frodo1008]

Besides Jim, have you noticed the results of the pol that is the very reason for this thread in the first place?

I would guess that even among the space "Cadet" types here on space.com, my opinion on this is not exactly alone!

[bdewoody]

I wrote an answer to this question in the other thread that recently appeared and I'll try to write an intelligent one in here.

It seems obvious to me that the moon should be our next goal in the conquest of our solar system. The seven previous trips to the moon that man made only proved that we were extremely lucky. The engineering was the best that the 1960's could offer and I am in no way trying to belittle the achievements of the Apollo Astronauts. But the consensus is that we were so very lucky that all the astronauts that went to the moon returned safely. I doubt that a similar approach to going to Mars would bring everyone home.

The moon is natures gift to us as a space station. It has all the materials we need to establish a long term base/colony on or just under it's surface. Granted it will take a long time to get the moon to the point where we can build the vehicles that we need to go to the rest of the solar system and launch them but I see it as the only way. Besides what's the hurry? Mars will still be there. Meanwhile the science that can be done on the moon during this time will surely pay for itself in the long run.

Several posters also pointed out that any system that will provide protection for the earth from stray asteroids or comets will have a much greater chance of success if based on the moon.

There will always be people that think we should never leave the safety and protection of mother earth but I think the long term will prove them wrong. The money that has been spent on the space program up to now was not shot out into space. It was spent paying people to do jobs here on earth.

So lets get off our fannys and tell congress what to do.






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