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Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#31

Post by htf »

prawks wrote: post #21

It is naive to ask why another? I was under the impression that Curiosity was supposed to be like the rover to end all Martian rovers. What else do they need? It seems like there must be something else to do aside from.... rove. Maybe not manned exploration, but something to push things further towards that? Or are they still stuck on "We must make a final, irrefutable conclusion on whether life has or has not existe…

The reasons are likely more political than scientific. The rovers keep the money flowing. Rovers have a high chance of success and they are some of the last few remaining tangible results that NASA can point to to justify their budget in the public's eye. A new kind of mission is risky and would likely get bogged down in bureaucracy (see Orion).

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#32

Post by worldsayshi »

rpm4321 wrote: post #23

Jesus, I'm all for sending out as many missions as Congress will pay for, but another Mars rover? Can't they throw a little bit of money towards sending a melt-bot to Europa or Enceladus, or a boat-bot to Titan already? It'll be 2015 before we even know what Ceres really looks like. Mars is certainly critically important, but the solar system is a massive place, and with such limited budgets why wouldn't you spend at…

I don't see how it can be made feasible to return humans from Mars for a very long time. Think about the expenditure and infrastructure required to launch a vehicle to escape velocity on earth. Shipping that kind of equipment to Mars seems like a undertaking so many times larger than a few rovers.

And I don't see how a one way trip would be politically/ethically possible.

edit: This sounds negative. All things considered; We have to try though. But perhaps knowing that we can have a sustainable settlement have to be the step zero of space colonization.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#33

Post by tocomment »

e03179 wrote: post #22
tocomment wrote: post #10

By 2020 I'd kind of hope we're sending mostly-autonomous humanoid robots. Wouldn't that really inspire people's imagination? And they could start building the infrastructure for a colony.

Why "humanoid" robots? Why not just "robots" that can do a job no matter what they look like?

If nothing else, PR value. And to inspire new engineers.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#34

Post by jonknee »

tocomment wrote: post #10

By 2020 I'd kind of hope we're sending mostly-autonomous humanoid robots. Wouldn't that really inspire people's imagination? And they could start building the infrastructure for a colony.

2020 is not very far away, definitely not far enough away to make a large robotic advancement in time to make it flight ready.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#35

Post by worldsayshi »

MichaelAO wrote: post #27
nakedrobot2 wrote: post #3

Doesn't Elon Musk want to have people walking around on Mars by 2020?

Yep! I thought this clip was cool - What Is The Business Model For Mars? Elon Musk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fS1FxBq64A

"I'll believe in people settling Mars at about the same time I see people settling the Gobi Desert. The Gobi Desert is about a thousand times as hospitable as Mars and five hundred times cheaper and easier to reach." - [Bruce Sterling](http://boingboing.net/2004/01/08/sterling-ill-believe.html)

I don't see how people can believe in a long time prospect of Mars colonization as long as we shun deserts and polar regions. Seriously. Sure Mars would be fun to visit (at this point). But live there, with our current technological advancements in mind?

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#36

Post by htf »

natep wrote: post #24
htf wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With its annual budget of $18.724 billion maybe? Seriously, where does that money go?

For a start... * Operating their current missions http://www.nasa.gov/missions/current/index.html * Designing and building future missions http://www.nasa.gov/missions/future/index.html * Public outreach/education

Thanks, that's a good list. However, one would be hard pressed to convince people to voluntarily fund this to the tune of 20 billion dollars a year.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#37

Post by MichaelAO »

worldsayshi wrote: post #35
MichaelAO wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep! I thought this clip was cool - What Is The Business Model For Mars? Elon Musk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fS1FxBq64A

"I'll believe in people settling Mars at about the same time I see people settling the Gobi Desert. The Gobi Desert is about a thousand times as hospitable as Mars and five hundred times cheaper and easier to reach." - [Bruce Sterling]( http://boingboing.net/2004/01/08/sterling-ill-believe.html ) I don't see how people can believe in a long time prospect of Mars colonization as long as we shun deserts and polar regio…

That quote is pretty spot on. However, the whole point is to "back up the biosphere" in order to protect human consciousness from an earth shattering event (pun intended). At some point in the future, we're going to have to get off this planet.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#38

Post by theklub »

worldsayshi wrote: post #35
MichaelAO wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yep! I thought this clip was cool - What Is The Business Model For Mars? Elon Musk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fS1FxBq64A

"I'll believe in people settling Mars at about the same time I see people settling the Gobi Desert. The Gobi Desert is about a thousand times as hospitable as Mars and five hundred times cheaper and easier to reach." - [Bruce Sterling]( http://boingboing.net/2004/01/08/sterling-ill-believe.html ) I don't see how people can believe in a long time prospect of Mars colonization as long as we shun deserts and polar regio…

Why would anyone waste their time trying to live in the Gobi desert? The point is to get humanity into space.

Re: Nasa to send new rover to Mars in 2020

#40

Post by rwmj »

MichaelAO wrote: post #37
worldsayshi wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I'll believe in people settling Mars at about the same time I see people settling the Gobi Desert. The Gobi Desert is about a thousand times as hospitable as Mars and five hundred times cheaper and easier to reach." - [Bruce Sterling]( http://boingboing.net/2004/01/08/sterling-ill-believe.html ) I don't see how people can believe in a long time prospect of Mars colonization as long as we shun deserts and polar regio…

That quote is pretty spot on. However, the whole point is to "back up the biosphere" in order to protect human consciousness from an earth shattering event (pun intended). At some point in the future, we're going to have to get off this planet.

That would be a useful outcome, but it's not a motivation for the people who have to live in what is in reality a freezing, extremely remote desert.
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