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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Skyman, post: 2585850, member: 28299&quot;]Going to the Moon in 1969 was a HUGE technological leap in an 8 year span.&nbsp; Just to put things in perspective, the ESCAPE rockets on the command module of the Saturn V (e.g. the pointy tip of the Saturn V whose sole job was to pull the small manned portion of the spacecraft off the top of the Saturn V in an emergency) were MORE powerful than the entire Redstone rocket that launched the first American into space in 1961, Alan Shepard aboard Freedom 7.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]562124[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]562129[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>With regards to Mars, we are thinking and planning about going to Mars.&nbsp; It IS another HUGE technological challenge.&nbsp; Assuming the money is there (and the human race hasn&#039;t destroyed itself along the way), it will be successfully accomplished at SOME point.</p><p><br /></p><p>Remember, at the end of the day it is Congress that is detailing what NASA can research and build.&nbsp; The PLANNED NASA spaceship and rocket, Orion and the SLS, will almost certainly NOT make the mission to Mars.&nbsp; They are basically giant public works projects, and the cost structure of them are prohibitive.&nbsp; However, private enterprises such as SpaceX and Blue Origin, are building SUBSTANTIALLY less expensive rockets that I strongly suspect the US Government will eventually purchase for Mars exploration.&nbsp; Even given the rockets, there are MANY other major hurdles to deal with along the way, such as long term exposure to radiation, preserving lightweight food for a minimum of three years, landing on Mars etc. etc.</p><p><br /></p><p>Even counting out going to Mars, which I do not for a minute do, I strongly suspect we will see China on the Moon within 15 years, and both Russia and the European Space Agency (ESA) have talked about going there too.&nbsp; Much as I would prefer the US to lead in that regard, space is difficult enough and important enough that I am glad of ANY country that keeps pushing forward the envelope.</p><p><br /></p><p>While I&#039;m waiting for all this to occur, I can still enjoy my own little piece of Mars, a 37 gram Martian meteorite that you can see next to an 1892 Barber quarter on my desktop.&nbsp; Note the fused crust caused by the heat of traveling through the Earth&#039;s atmosphere at transonic speeds.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]562135[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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