What's waiting on Mars?

marlene Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — Thu, 08 May 2008 23:56:16 GMT

please keep me informed of all important issues
about planetary excavations and progressive data
that will keep me enlightened for the future. i am a senior ready to go back to finish my next degree.

What's waiting on Mars?

Mars — Fri, 09 May 2008 00:54:38 GMT

An angry red planet,if we ever step foot on mars....

What's waiting on Mars?

Thomas Ashby, Calgary — Fri, 09 May 2008 02:35:46 GMT

Marlene: Try googling this stuff yourself. You don't need a degree to do that.

Lets hope Phoenix is a complete success. If Mars was anything more like earth it would take far more than our attempst to get real understanding

What's waiting on Mars?

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:18:06 GMT

The dust devils shouldn't be dangerous, and maybe even helpful; the Rovers have had their solar panels "cleaned" several times apparently by dust devils. Without this they would have been done by now. Another reason martian 'spring' and 'fall' are so active is that CO2 is vaporizing from one pole, while freezing out onto the other.... setting up global winds.

What's waiting on Mars?

anna, van nuys, CA — Fri, 09 May 2008 04:31:07 GMT

i want to know what ever happened to trying to figure out if mars can be like earth one day, it would be great because then people can have a place to go when something happens big to earth

What's waiting on Mars?

Thomas Ashby, Calgary — Fri, 09 May 2008 06:22:47 GMT

Who can't love Mars? Thankyou Alan for pulling this rabbit up.

What's waiting on Mars?

Stop, Mars, Pollution — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:49:07 GMT

Yet another soon-to-be piece of trash junking up Mars. Pretty soon it's going to look like a salvage yard of old useless NASA vehicles. Stop junking up the planet.

What's waiting on Mars?

Peter Davey, Bournemouth, Dorset, Great Britain — Fri, 09 May 2008 15:17:22 GMT

To quote the Bard: "Hot ice and wondrous strange snow".

Now that I think of it, that quotation is from "A Midsummer Night's Dream. I suppose that the idea of receiving images from the surface of Mars would have struck the Elizabethans as being at least as fantastic as any story of sprites and goblins, although Shakespeare hasalready made his way into space; Titania and Oberon giving their names to two of the moons of Uranus, together with other characters from the plays.

"Methinks it were an easy leap to pluck bright honour from the pale-faced Moon" - if not quite as easy as we might yet hope, at least it demonstrates how quickly our idea of the impossible may change.

What's waiting on Mars?

Todd, Billerica, MA — Fri, 09 May 2008 15:56:49 GMT

Spirit and Opportunity need those dust devels down where they are roving around Mars. What are they doing so far up north? hehe

Dust devils. Go down south and help clean off the solar arrays for the 2 NASA rovers. OK.

Thanks. :)

What's waiting on Mars?

Andy La Plata, MD — Fri, 09 May 2008 16:47:27 GMT

I think exploring Mars and all the other worlds is, if nothing else, fascinating. The pictures are amazing and I marvel at the progress of our technology. I do wish, however, that someone just once would put a microphone on one of these landers. Just imagine hearing the first sounds from another world! The wind blowing, the sound of wheels rolling over the surface, dust grains pinging off the microphone...I'd love to hear all of it.

What's waiting on Mars?

Diane Patzer, Ithaca, NY — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:53:07 GMT

Andy:

There was a microphone on the Huygens probe dropped on Titan. Check here for details and mp3s:

http://www.planetary.org/explore/topics/saturn/titan_sounds.html

I've always found space exploration fascinating. Let's keep the probes going!

What's waiting on Mars?

cydon — Fri, 09 May 2008 18:24:59 GMT

Something we don't want to find...mars r us

What's waiting on Mars?

S.B. Stein E.B. NJ — Fri, 09 May 2008 18:45:18 GMT

My question is about the radiation that Earth's atmosphere protects compared to Mars' atsmosphere. I know that you mentioned Mars only has 1%. Could this lander give us radiation readings so that we have a better idea how much sheilding we would need to protect the first explorers? Could we do what was done in the Red Mars series of sci-fi book -- build up the atmosphere and begin to terraform the planet?

What's waiting on Mars?

Thomas Ashby, Calgary — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:53:37 GMT

Andy La Plata: I have wondered that often myself. It seems like a easy feat but never has been done. Imagine that..itunes from Mars.

What's waiting on Mars?

Catherine Klingenberg St.Paul MN — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:24:58 GMT

I keep reading articles about how humans will be able to live on the Moon and possibly Mars sometime in the future. Why would anyone want to leave Earth? The chances of something catastrophic happening is practicly zero (think about meteor hitting Earth and blowing it up or something),with the exception of global warming. As an idea, we should clean up Earth and keep exploring Mars as a potential habitable planet. But if I had the choice of which planet I could live on besides Earth, I'd go with the Moon. The Moon seems more habitable than Mars anyway.

What's waiting on Mars?

Susan Evans, Atlanta, Georgia — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:39:03 GMT

Perhaps the wind activity is high because Mars' gravity is only .38 that of Earth's. In other words--even though we normally don't think of it this way--there's no strong gravity to "hold the Martian 'air' in place." It slides around more freely and the viscous forces are not as great at the surface or between layers. Just a thought.

What's waiting on Mars?

Hy, LA, CA — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:56:50 GMT

Adding microphones is mostly a matter of trading off the weight of some other instrument for the weight of the microphone. So they usually don't get included.

Also, a microphone HAS been sent to Mars -- on a mission that failed. There's only a 50% success rate for Mars missions. It's really hard to get things to Mars and orbit or land them safely!

What's waiting on Mars?

lunatoo, Mars, PA — Fri, 09 May 2008 20:57:52 GMT

I think Mars needs a big moon. How can we give Mars a big moon?

What's waiting on Mars?

Hannah/Boaumont/California — Sat, 10 May 2008 01:19:01 GMT

I love Mars I'm just 9 and I'm doing a project on Mars
and it's very fun.

What's waiting on Mars?

aMartian — Sat, 10 May 2008 01:49:08 GMT

What's waiting on Mars? Probably all the people working in that martian base Bush promised to establish...

What's waiting on Mars?

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Sat, 10 May 2008 05:03:37 GMT

Some interesting comments above....

Here're some notes: Sound propagates very poorly in Mars' current atmosphere. If you come live in it, your hearing would be as if you had a pillow bound tightly over each ear...

S. Evans: Gravity is mostly just important for *vertical* motions of air, so in general large scale winds are not so dependent on it. One area where gravity *does* figure in, is in the 'buoyancy' of warm air vs. cold. For that kind of thing, you're right...lower gravity DOES have an effect, but here the effect is to reduce the motion. A very big factor in martian winds is the 2-phase nature of Mars' major atmospheric gas, CO2. Thankfully we don't have that on Earth since that would mean things like nitrogen snow and frost! The closest we have to Mars' CO2 is our H2O; but H2O is never more than 3% or 4% of our air (and that only on very hot, humid days).

Hy of LA: That 50% number is heavily padded by soviet probes. They sent a whole string of them, all of which shared the same flaw, and therefore failed. They kept sending them on the theory "sooner or later one must succeed". They did very little failure analysis, and kept launching failures. Only 2 or 3 US ones have failed.

lunatoo: We can't.

Hannah: Excellent!

What's waiting on Mars?

Scott Kirby — Sat, 10 May 2008 18:42:57 GMT

I find it amusing that someone thinks a few high tech pieces of survey equipment sent by the finest minds on Earth are going to "junk up" Mars. Come on, it's not like they're throwing their Big Gulp cups out the window.

What's waiting on Mars?

Amanda Hugnkiss, Victorville, CA — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:03:38 GMT

Hmmm who really cares what is going on, on Mars? I think we should take care of our home planet before we start screwing up the other planets. Rather than waste resources trying to see what is on other planets, lets feed, cloth and educate the future of this planet. What good is knowing what is on Mars if this planet goes cold because we used it up.

What's waiting on Mars?

Joseph Holness , Gresham, Oregon — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:18:16 GMT

Cool! At last there is something in the news which has nothing to do with "race, politics, religion, or bratty / spoiled Americans".
It will be interesting to see steps being made towards a manned mission to Mars.

Regards

What's waiting on Mars?

Noah — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:18:30 GMT

I'm ready to move and rebuild. By the way, is there any oil on Mars?

What's waiting on Mars?

rik larson powell river british columbia — Sat, 10 May 2008 19:26:40 GMT

lunatoo is correct. there is no viable future for terrafication unless we set about deliberate pertebations to ceres orbit.accelerating it into mars capture would provide tectonic activity to mars and thus subsurface warming,releasing frozen volitiles.using other asteroids in an elaborate effort to cause watery ceres to be captured may take several hunderd years and without the simulation of those circadian forces as on earth, all efforts to colonize will fail.we cannot deny our evolved physiology.

What's waiting on Mars?

John Galt, San Jose, CA — Sat, 10 May 2008 20:01:21 GMT

I've read about some ancient astronomers describing Mars as closer to the sun than the Earth. If it once was an inner planet, wouldn't that help to explain why it was once warm enough to have liquid water? A gravitational collision with Venus could have tossed it to an outer orbit, where its water would be in the permafrost, and its surface now covered by red rusty rocks and dust.

What's waiting on Mars?

Paula Mckee — Sat, 10 May 2008 20:02:06 GMT

We are not being told the truth about Mars or the moon, theres things that have gone on there since the forties or fifties if noone here has heard of Richard Hogland and also the Camalot Project i sujest googling both websites especially project camalot once there you will find out about things that are being kept hidden from the world if it wasent for wistleblowers and there are many, from everything to the underground bases already built for the coming 2012 events facing the world i dident believe it at first but i do now, nibru(planet x is heading our way and all all! the people in authority know all about it but of course they will be safe underground wont they but what about the rest of us??? the affects from planet x could wipe out 2 thirds of the worlds population this is being hidden from all of us but brave people who some have been murdered for trying to warn us, recently a top norwegian politican wrote a very very important letter(cant remember who it was sent to sorry) but go to youtube and type in norwegian politican warning letter and the video with his letter will come up, its a warning to all of us hes trying to get it public as he knows the truth about 2012 and planet x, please read it!!!!, another important video to see is n 2 parts on the camalot website an interview with George Green its about a total ecanomic collapse in america a collapse of everything according to him and a war that will be started on purpose!! apparently a lot to do with getting rid of some of the worlds population if you dont believe what im saying go to youtube and type his name in and look for project camalot interview he has already brought property somewhere else to move out of america intime this willo happen soon he said other authority figures have already moved because of the events that will happen this year i think he said, for anyone living in america certain areas will be worse affected. there is a lot of evil in this world to get what they want at any cost, oh and concentration camps are being set up for apparent marshal law in the future, about planet x u can find out everything on youtube, youtube is not only just for the silly videos people put out there there u will find out a lot of very important imfo we should already know but has and still is trying to be kept hidden from us. Paula. England

What's waiting on Mars?

Lorraine Taube Brockway Township, Michigan — Sat, 10 May 2008 20:24:29 GMT

I am 78 years old and will never understand spending all that money on space. What for? Maybe it is why I was so bad in science in school right through collage. Why don't we spend in on something that will help us here on earth? Oh it is interesting, I will admit that, but such a waste of time, money, and brains. Please! Can someone give me an answer that I have been asking for about 60 years? Someone must know. Science has done so much good. Just wondering

What's waiting on Mars?

Nick Jason, Hollywood, FL — Sat, 10 May 2008 20:35:16 GMT

I think we should send a probe to the lowest point on the planet.(ALTITUDE) The pressure would be greater and the temperature higher. Seems to me like a better chance of finding SOMETHING.

What's waiting on Mars?

Adriab, Rochester, NY — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:09:31 GMT

Just a note for all of you who are wondering if we could make Mars like Earth. The answer, very very unlikely.
Mars is much smaller than Earth, and much less dense, so it has far less gravity. Mars also has an inert core. There are no plate tectonics like here on Earth, and there is no strong magnetic field to protect against dangerous radiation from the sun. Both the orbit and day of Mars are longer than those of Earth.
All of these things add up to the fact that we couldn't live on Mars like we can live on Earth, but it still would make a fun place to visit.

What's waiting on Mars?

GP, Raleigh,NC — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:21:31 GMT

I think it is amazing how far our tech has gone. I just hope we don't find anything that we might regret in the future. Has anyone seen RedPlanet or have played Gears of War.

What's waiting on Mars?

eammy, fort mohave, AZ — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:31:58 GMT

Mars will never be like earth. It has no mexicans and no grafitti. All the vehicles sent there are electric powered and have no pollution making beans..

What's waiting on Mars?

John B., Peoria, Illinois — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:39:25 GMT

Send all the probes you want. Until they roll out some revolutionary propulsion system that can cut the travel time down, a Mars mission is costly with the bill to do this in the hundreds of billions. No bucks, no Buck Rogers.

What's waiting on Mars?

Eric. Muncy, Pa. — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:48:18 GMT

What's waiting for us on Mars? Good question to ponder. Perhaps, if we get a manned mission there, we will find something totally new -- perhaps a new element, a new resource for energy, new chemical compunds beneath the soil, deposits of minerals we haven't discovered, or yet, maybe a new way to apply what we already have!! That is why explorers explore -- for the unknown discoveries that await.

What's waiting on Mars?

jamila — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:52:04 GMT

wow fantastic article keep me updated pls= please

What's waiting on Mars?

lunatoo, Mars, PA — Sat, 10 May 2008 21:57:35 GMT

JC,

Perhaps when we discover the secrets of the dark matter, we could have the power to give Mars a big moon.

What's waiting on Mars?

Rob Roy Edmond Ok — Sun, 11 May 2008 03:43:38 GMT

How abouot we ship all the prisoners there. Well it was just a thought.

What's waiting on Mars?

Collier Hageman, Arlington, Virginia — Sun, 11 May 2008 16:12:14 GMT

Miss Klingenberg needs to read up on the planets. The moon is not a planet. When people from Earth inhabit another world within our solar sysytem it will most assuredly be our moon before any other body, not because it is more "habitable" (it is not) but only because it is much nearer. Its low gravity and close proximity make it an ideal spaceport location, a staging area for missions to the rest of the solar system. A small craft will ferry crew to the moon (or to lunar orbit) where they will transfer to larger long-range craft, able to exit lunar gravity with many times less expenditure of energy. Of the actual planets in our solar system Mars is the most earthlike, followed by Venus. Mars has an atmosphere - the moon does not. Dangerous radiation levels are lower on Mars than the moon. There may be water on Mars -- none on the moon. Mars gravity, while low is nearer Earth gravity than that of the moon. The general topography of Mars is much more Earthlike than that of the moon, showing distinct signs of having been shaped by the action of water in eons past. I'm sure more knowledgable readers can add significantly to this list.

What's waiting on Mars?

Mike, WA — Sun, 11 May 2008 16:55:50 GMT

JC, lunatoo: We can... it would be incredibly difficult, outrageously expensive, but *could* be done. First, we'd have to find a suitable piece of rock in most likely the Kuiper Belt; Second, we'd have to nudge it out of its current orbit, into a very precise tragectory towards Mars... it would have to go slow enough, and close enough, to Mars, that Mars would "grab it," and trap it into orbit. The biggest flaw? As previously mentioned, Mar's low gravity. Also, if we missed, we'd then have this rather large rock floating through the inner solar system, inviting eventual catastrophe...

What's waiting on Mars?

Frank glover rochester, NY — Sun, 11 May 2008 17:31:48 GMT

"Yet another soon-to-be piece of trash junking up Mars. Pretty soon it's going to look like a salvage yard of old useless NASA vehicles. Stop junking up the planet."

We have more stuff on a smaller body (the Moon), and yet you couldn't find any of it unless you tried very hard to land near its location (as Apollo 12 was able to do)

Stop acting as if the entire surface of Mars has the area of a football field...

What's waiting on Mars?

Paula. — Sun, 11 May 2008 18:50:11 GMT

I see that my lengthy comments on what is really going on in space and elswhere especially reguarding America have not! been allowed to be posted here, so the truth is yet trying to be hidden from the public again! otherwise you are just as in the dark about the truth as most other people here. My guess is that this comment wont be allowed to be posted either. Unfortunatly this is the kind of attitude that will keep people in the dark until it could be too late so shame on U!!! ignorance wont be bliss for millions of people in 2012 or sooner, or is it rather that your just too scared to face the truth???

What's waiting on Mars?

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Mon, 12 May 2008 06:14:33 GMT

To Lorraine T: The money spent on the space program, since inception in 1958, is actually quite a small amount compared to some of the things we have spent hunderds of billions on in just the last few years. Interesting stuff? Yes, of course I agree. And I won't rehash all the scientific and technological spin-offs that have come from it. But read Hannah's message above and I think you'll see what *I* think one of the best positives of the space program has been: it inspires kids like her (and long ago, me) to get into science/engineering in the first place.

To Nick J: That would be Hellas Basin. Atmospheric pressure < 2% earth's surface pressure. But a good idea . . .

To Adriab: And no large moon, as lunatoo pointed out. Surprisingly important for keeping earth's tilt to the sun constant. Without one, Mars 'tumbles' alot . . .
*natural* climate change (as opposed to man-made) on earth just doesn't compare to it.

To lunatoo: If only . . .

To Mike: We (people) haven't figured out how Phobos and Diemos got into Mars' orbit yet. Technically we probably could start thinking about how to get a KBO to *crash into* Mars. We're not close to figuring out how to get 'orbit-insert' such a thing, though. As far as big rock go, there're already many of those. I think it's especially alarming when we 'discover' a new one AFTER it has just made a close pass by Earth.

Alan: Jeez I love reading and responding to posts like this! Sorry to "hold forth" . . .

What's waiting on Mars?

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Mon, 12 May 2008 06:43:43 GMT

"I find it amusing that someone thinks a few high tech pieces of survey equipment sent by the finest minds on Earth are going to "junk up" Mars. Come on, it's not like they're throwing their Big Gulp cups out the window."

Yeah...I'm with Scott K. on this . . .

What's waiting on Mars?

romei — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:44:44 GMT

one thing for sure...and u guys will remember my words.no human being will ever survive on planet mars.

What's waiting on Mars?

Patrick D, Nashua, NH — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:29:57 GMT

Paula, if you speak of a biblical prediction come true, then you are speaking to the wrong people. Please do not preach nonsense to a group of intellectuals (or at least those trying to be in the case of "junking up" Mars). When 2012 comes you may have your prediction, but I like most people on planet earth will be looking further to advance the future rather than dwell on a near prehistoric prediction you use to hide behind. Also, if you are going to try to prove a point then it would make sense to at least seem intellectual poor grammar and consistantly mispelled words don't help. We are not too scared to face this "truth", we are logical enough to ignore it.

What's waiting on Mars?

Brian, Houston, TX — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:23:40 GMT

Amen, Patrick D!! Amen!

What's waiting on Mars?

eons — Mon, 12 May 2008 18:03:19 GMT

It was mars that collided with earth eons ago when mars and earth shared the same orbit around the sun...our moon was created and all of mars water was deposited on earth as a result and left mars barren and thrown out to it's present orbit.

What's waiting on Mars?

Pinocet — Mon, 12 May 2008 18:47:24 GMT

Don't tell anyone, but the real reason the Mayan calender stopped at the year 2012 was because they ran out of space on their temple wall...so get over it.

What's waiting on Mars?

Malik, Flint, Michigan — Mon, 12 May 2008 20:54:23 GMT

Isn't it interesting though? 2012... What will really happen? Sure, most likely nothing. But it would be interesting if something of Biblical/Torahanic/Qur'anic proportions did happen? Sad, yes, but still interesting. As far as habitation of Mars goes, if it is possible (very remote), then we are at the least a few centurys away. Once we are technologically advanced enough to get the materials and man power to mars to do anything significant, we might as well drive by it and head to one of the Jovian moons that are almost as big as mars an in some cases more habitable.

What's waiting on Mars?

Hannah, Cumming Georgia — Mon, 12 May 2008 22:53:56 GMT

I am very excited to the new technologies and informatiom that is coming from the project mars. Im alwyas updating myself to whats going on with the project! Im very interested in science myself, and it makes me want to persue my future in science because of mars.

What's waiting on Mars?

JC, Fairbanks, AK — Mon, 12 May 2008 23:01:30 GMT

"It was mars that collided with earth eons ago when mars and earth shared the same orbit around the sun...our moon was created and all of mars water was deposited on earth as a result and left mars barren and thrown out to it's present orbit."

No . . . It was a *mars-sized proto-planet* that collided with Earth (apparently), and launched much of Earth's then-crust (along with alot of its' own material) into Earth orbit, where is coalesced into the Moon. This is why the Moon has an anomalously small iron core; it is made mostly of crustal (ie. 'rocky') materials from both the impactor and Earth.

As for Mars, it still has alot of water (this is precisely what things like the Rovers, MGS, Odyssey, and MRO have been showing us!!). But it lost a lot of its original water to UV photo-dissociation. A long word, but an easy concept: UV light from the sun passes straight thru Mars' atmosphere. When it hits water molecules in the air, it breaks them into H2 and O2. The H2 escapes Mars' gravity, to space, the O2 goes and oxidizes something. Thus Mars loses water over time, especially when that water is in the atmosphere.

And there is growing evidence that a lot of *Earth's* water came from impacts of millions of comets into the early Earth. The rest presumably accreted with the Earth and 'differentiated out' to the surface.

What's waiting on Mars?

Paul Stiller Barrington, IL — Tue, 13 May 2008 00:21:21 GMT

Why don't we send some small construction equipment to the asteroid belt where a computer program might allow them to divert some asteroids to the martian surface until the mass of the planet increased enough to maintain a denser atmosphere? Duh Or perhaps just build a big greenhouse

What's waiting on Mars?

Ilyrian, KLA. Kosove, Prishtine. — Tue, 13 May 2008 00:47:32 GMT

Well, I don`t believe this propaganda about Planet X? It`s a joke? I just think that we get most of our technology from Aliens? Let`s go back 600 years! We didn`t have what we have today, right? I would love to see humans live on Mars. I think we`re really close to accomplish this dream.

What's waiting on Mars?

Bryan — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:02:16 GMT

For everyone who thinks the Mars probes/missions are wastes of money, i want to remind you that the majority of your tax dollars (if you're american) are paying for The War instead. Why not start asking those organizations for money? I think any endeavour of science is a much more praiseworthy cause than death could ever be.
Yeah, i'm a soldier, yeah i've served my time in Theater. I'm not anti-war by any means, but people really need to learn to stop bashing on interplanetary expeditions when there are much more valid targets for criticism.
I can't wait to see what Phoenix will show us.

What's waiting on Mars?

Todd, Billerica, MA — Wed, 14 May 2008 18:00:34 GMT

These 2012 Planet X doomsayers seem to be the same 2003 Planet X doomsayers. This mysterious brown dwarf (or a planet orbiting the dwarf) did not cross our path then, why should it do so in 2012. When 2012 comes and goes, a new date will be fabricated. All of the people with short attention spans (also a failure to research anything even though we live in the Information Age) will flock to the new date when it is fabricated sometime around 2016.

What's waiting on Mars?

Kip SoCal — Wed, 14 May 2008 21:58:26 GMT

We must keep sending probes to Mars and beyond, or we might as well bury our heads in the sand and hope nothing bites us in the butt. NASA needs to take vounteers and send a one way manned mission there to start a base operation for future missions (and YES, I would voulenteer for it!). The future doesn't come without a price, and there are people willing to pay that price.

I agree with taking a few KBO's and sending them to the surface to help "seed" the planet with more resources, but unfortunately, it would take more technology than we currently have to get objects large enough there without missing and sending them on to us here.

What's waiting on Mars?

Delmar Fairchild, Barron, WI — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:38:13 GMT

Paula:
Arnold already Terraformed Mars for us. I had bought his documentary not too long ago called "Total Recall". I have booked passage on the next flight out. Why live on earth when it will be destroyed in a few years? We need to get there before all the trash people show up. Perhaps get the best intersections for a nice business. Perhaps a Restaurant or gas station. Dollar General?

One thing about any of Alan's blogs: He prints everything that people send in. Even it you can't read it or doesn't make any sense or is a lampoon.

What's waiting on Mars?

johnQpublic — Thu, 15 May 2008 14:07:25 GMT

"I am 78 years old and will never understand spending all that money on space. What for? Maybe it is why I was so bad in science in school right through collage. Why don't we spend in on something that will help us here on earth? Oh it is interesting, I will admit that, but such a waste of time, money, and brains. Please! Can someone give me an answer that I have been asking for about 60 years? Someone must know. Science has done so much good. Just wondering"

Loraine, The money spent on space programs have benefitted all of us a great deal, much of the technology developed for the space programs have found mainstream uses, these experiments and advancements continue as we try new things. One of the greatests things to come from this type of research and development is coming to new understandings about our own planet and its origins. While I agree that it would be better to spend more money on things like education, healthcare, and infrastructure in our country, The money spent on the space programs pales in comparison to what we spend on things like the military, or foreign subsidies. The continuing struggle to learn more about our world, our universe, and our eventual place in it is as important in the long run as any of the short run things that we do..again, wars, and the political agendas of some of our erstwhile politicians.
A quick comparison would be..space budget over the next 10 years is roughly 50 billion dollars..we spend that in less than 3 months in Iraq. Which one do you think will actually bring us more useful things for the money spent?

What's waiting on Mars?

johnQpublic — Thu, 15 May 2008 14:16:22 GMT

I find it strange that Paula puts forth such a silly postulation. But, it definately shows just how large the gap in education and logic is between people in the same culture. Even here in The United States we see it. A good example, would be the elections in 2000, and 2004. People saw what was going on, but some had "faith" rather than actually do some research, and believed even when confronted by the facts. I'm not an atheist, however, I do feel like all written works of man, when it comes to religion and theology are works of legend or fiction. Its hard to be the smartest man in the room on too many occasions this is the case, as I'm sure many of you who read and post here are aware. Adam and Eve? Legend. Moses? Legend. The Ark..again, Legend. No proof other than ONE book's (in its many forms, and interpretations) says it happened. Whats amazing, is for people to believe whole heartedly in something like that, but not believe in things like global warming, evolution, or carbon dating..things of which have more than met the burden of proof over the years..I ask you...who's hiding from what here?

What's waiting on Mars?

Just a thought, USA — Thu, 22 May 2008 18:04:25 GMT

To those who are so ignorant that they automatically associate groundless predictions with the Bible/God(Yahweh); I'd like to let you know that when anyone puts a defined date (like 2012) on such things as prophecies, predictions, doomsday, etc., it's the first sign of a false prediction. The Bible does not put exact dates on its prophecies...

...But what you should be concerned about is that of the approximately 500 prophecies in the Bible, over 500 have been fulfilled (no, not only in the Bible but in written secular history). Only very few remain to be fulfilled, all in regards to the end world (which the Bible does not claim will take place in 2012, or any other specific year for that matter). I don't ask you to believe me, but read for yourself. Pick up a Bible (you know that book which so many of you pass off as a fairy tale/outdated piece of literature/myth, but, very few have actually taken the time to read even one page of). What you read may surprise you!

IF you are all such LOGICAL thinkers...what do I have to lose if I'm wrong about everything I believe in with respect to Jesus/God and Scripture??! A few years of instant gratification on this earth?!?! What do you have to lose if you are wrong about everything you believe in?!?! Are you willing to be your eternity? Which is the more logical path to follow?