U.S. considers new moon mission

USA Today ^ | December 5, 2003 | Traci Watson, Dan Vergano and Rick Hampson

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Doubts resurface about lunar ice***Water-ice, it is argued, could provide drinking water for a colony as well as rocket fuel in the form of liquid hydrogen and oxygen. But interpreting the evidence of water-ice on the Moon has always been open to differing views, depending upon whether the observations were made from the Earth or from the vicinity of the Moon. ***

International Declaration Signed Advocating Return to the Moon*** "During the International Lunar Conference 2003, we identified a number of main thrusts for an expanded lunar program: assessment and use of potential ice/water resources at the lunar poles for human use; development of energy resources for both Moon and Earth and establishment of lunar astrophysical observatories. We have concluded that, for the future development of the Moon, the deposits of hydrogen indicated by the USA Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions must be fully understood to confirm their nature and importance for future planetary exploration, development and human settlement."

"We recommend a sequence of technology, exploration and commercial missions on the road to this human Moon presence. We support the goals of a comprehensive series of missions including polar orbiters and landers, South Pole-Aitken Sample Return, Selene-B, Lunar Globe and [the European Space Agency's] Aurora lunar demonstrator. We advocate robotic engineering precursors for in-situ resource utilization and deployment of infrastructures preparing for human-tended operations."

"To encourage and stimulate the peaceful and progressive development of the Moon, we recommend that the international community of national space agencies, companies and individuals operate and maintain an exploratory mission at a pole of the Moon to serve as a catalyst for future human missions within a decade."

"Our vision is one of expanding humanity into space on an endless journey. We believe a human return to the Moon is the next step into the Solar System and the future of the human race," the declaration concludes.***

DUBYA'S NOT JUST HOWLING AT THE MOON

[BenLurkin]

If the U.S. chooses to go back to that big airless rock, then let it be for the benefit of the U.S., first and foremost. The rest of the world can drop dead as far as I am concerned.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Faster, cheaper, better alone.

[matrix2225]

It buggles my mind, why most people concentrate on Mars which is more far away then moon. It would cost less to go back to moon, and after all, base on moon would be cool, part of Missle defense system. As a joke, I hope they would have McDonald there, would be cool.

[BenLurkin]

McDonald's in the moon base is a great idea.

My only concern would be that (since it would be recirculated air) the whole place might smell like one of those WalMarts which has a McDonald's inside the store.

[demlosers]

Bump for later...

[matrix2225]

lol, can you imagine drive through on moon. Hi can I have two Mcmoons and heineken to go.

[Loyal Buckeye]

The moon would be a great goal for the program. It would be a challenge and would reassert some confidence into the whole space program.

In addition, they could check out the flag for Sheila Jackson Lee since the robot on Mars couldn't do it.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bump!

[ClearCase_guy]

But Park says it would be cheaper to gather the helium from seawater. As for other minerals, he says, "At $10,000 a pound to get things into low-Earth orbit, it wouldn't be economical to mine the moon even if the whole thing were made of gold."

I don't know anything about Park. Perhaps he is a thoughtful and insightful man. But ...

Is there a lot of helium in seawater? I would guess not, but it's not my field.

The cost of getting to orbit: he's barking up the wrong tree here. Cost to get up into orbit is high, but if you put mining machinery on the moon, it can work and harvest resources indefinitely, putting money in your pocket without a lot of added expense. The initial costs of getting into orbit are not the point. I think his argument is like saying "$50 Million in venture capital so that we can create a company to manufacture computers? We'd have to sell them for $50 Million for it to be worth it!"

[Cincinatus' Wife]

But Park says it would be cheaper to gather the helium from seawater.

It's even easier to get bs out of Robert Parks.

[montomike]

I thought we were told not to return by the forward observation post of the Borg!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Return to Moon May Be on Agenda***The plans reflect a consistent strain in Bush's rhetoric, going back to his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia in 2000, when he promised to use "good times for great goals." In fundraising speeches for his reelection campaign, Bush says he wants to pursue "great goals worthy of a great nation."***

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

"Totally embarrassing," said physicist Robert Park of the American Physical Society. "Been there, done that."

NASA spent a great deal of effort selling the civil uses of its technologies. But if the moon program was vindicated by the side effects, wouldn't we have been better off to try to do those beneficial effects for their own sake???

If you want to produce security for America, you could do far worse than to improve the American economy--so that that economy is able to pay for the security costs at a high level. That is a major lesson of Reagan-Kemp-Roth.

If you want to improve the economy the best things you can do are to minimize inefficient uses of our opportunities (such as the energy of our people). And that implies optimizing our management, which is another word for letting the people who know the most about a given problem profit by fixing it. So government doing nothing is usually a virtue in its own right.

And if you must "shoot the moon" with a big, expensive project, why choose something as 1960 "big iron" as moon exploration? Why not a biotech or even a nanotech objective? Why not a major SDI revival?

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Why not use it all? Major undertakings need funding that private businesses are unable or unwilling to fund. Large projects for national defense and economic expansion are traditionally backed by governments of advanced nations, then commercial enterprise follows.

You can't plan a discovery, you push the limits and uncover them.

[azhenfud]

"McDonald's in the moon base is a great idea."

The McGristle sandwich is back!

[jempet]

Personally, I think it would be worth the effort just to put up big neon advertisements. Imagine, in the EU they would see the moon everynight with a big Coca Cola logo blaring back down at them. France, who always reminds us we have "no culture" sure would be ticked to see "brought to you by the USA" looking down from the moon every night. I love it!

[Indie]

Sounds like a great forward warning base of both incoming earth killer asteroids, and the borg.
We have to extend our horizons to survive. Now is better than tomorrow.
And yes, put America's priority first!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Bump!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Should we do it?