Probes to moon, Mars called priority

CNN News ^ | June 1, 2005 | AP News

[blueberry12]

HOUSTON, Texas (AP) -- NASA's new administrator and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, vow the space agency will have the necessary funding to implement President Bush's vision to send astronauts back to the moon and to Mars.

"We have the money to do good things," said Michael Griffin, who has visited at least seven of NASA's centers since his appointment in April.

During a visit at the home of human spaceflight, he spoke Tuesday with astronauts, flight directors and other top administrators.

Griffin said the agency has received a steady flow of funding that, when adjusted for inflation, is comparable to the funding the agency had when it first sent astronauts to the moon during the Apollo program of the 1960s and early 1970s.

"You will find that NASA received as much in the last 16 years of its existence as in the first 16," he said. "In my judgment, we can go to the moon. We can go to Mars. We can't do them quite as quickly as we did during Apollo, but we can do it."

DeLay said NASA is a priority -- even in a time of war and tightening budgets.

[blueberry12]

I think it is unwise to use taxpayers' money to go to Mars or to the moon.

Why in the world should we go to other planets? I know! They want to find water and micro organisms on Mars. They just want to prove that evolution is credible and true. I wouldn't want to waste money on a mission that wants to disprove the Bible. I believe that God created the world, and I don't need or want any proof of anything. I don't want them to go to Mars.

Why not put the money in the stock market instead of sending it to the moon or the Mars?

[RKV]

Is there something wrong with letting our capitalists do this work? Why involve the government and taxpayers? We now have a private suborbital spacecraft in the early stages of testing. Let Rutan (and others) do it. For a profit if they can.

[SirChas]

Why not put the money in the stock market instead of sending it to the moon or the Mars?

It's a good thing the early explorers didn't think that way or the new world might not have been discovered and we might all be living in France!

[SirChas]

Why not put the money in the stock market instead of sending it to the moon or the Mars?

It's a good thing the early explorers didn't think that way or the new world might not have been discovered and we might all be living in France!

[jackbenimble]

I think unmanned space missions are tremendously more cost effective and accomplish just about as much scientifically.

I am against this colossal expenditure of funds when we are told there is not sufficient money to secure our borders.

[darth]

How did you end up in America? Because a number of countries spent enormous sums exploring and claiming land that they counld'nt survey for another 200 years. The exploration of space is about science, land, resources, economic growth, and the progress of civilization. The Solar System is the New World without the natives. Why are we speaking English? Because the British explored and colonized better than the rest. Look at the long term and you will see that exploring and colonizing space is one of the turning points in human history. Oh, and NASA's budget is about 1/2 percent of the total federal budget. The payback on that investment will be equivalent to the payback on the cost of Lewis and Clark's expedition.

[blueberry12]

Why not put the money in the stock market instead of sending it to the moon or the Mars?

It's a good thing the early explorers didn't think that way or the new world might not have been discovered and we might all be living in France! Sooner or later they would have discovered it. When you give capitalism a chance, things will be discovered when needed as money becomes available.

[orionblamblam]

> I believe that God created the world, and I don't need or want any proof of anything.

WOW!!!

I've never read willfull ignorance put quite so succinctly.

[orionblamblam]

> Sooner or later they would have discovered it.

Which "they" do you refer? The Chinese? The Turks?

> When you give capitalism a chance

Best way to do that: use the government to open new markets. Burying one's head in the sand is not a good form of capitalism.

[NJ_gent]

"Why in the world should we go to other planets?"

Because the scientific discoveries and inventions along the way help to better the lives of Americans? Ask a firefighter who's survived running through a wall of flames thanks to materials developed by NASA to deal with the extreme conditions of space whether that was money well spent. Is NASA expensive? Yes. Does it provide us with more knowledge than virtually anything in the history of man? Yes.

"I believe that God created the world, and I don't need or want any proof of anything. I don't want them to go to Mars."

No problem, we'll stop funding NASA immediately. By the way, liberals don't like guns, bombs, or tanks, so we've also stopped funding the US military as per their request.

There's a lot of junk our government wastes our money on; protecting the US and advancing the frontiers of science are not included in that category.

[horsebraker]

You are quite right! I wanted to see what type of person would actually state some thing so narrow minded, self-rightous, and hypocritical so I went to their profile page and well I was scared(which is hard to do I, teach 7th-12th grade).

With out exploration this Country would not be what it is today. You would not be living in a free society(there might not even be a free society with out the founding of these Country).

[NJ_gent]

"Is there something wrong with letting our capitalists do this work?"

To my knowledge, no one is stopping private spacecraft ventures. In the mean time, while said private space ventures are moving along slower than molasses, I'm glad we're continuing to advance the frontiers of our knowledge and technology.

[theDentist]

I think a joint venture (private sector and public) for such exploration will be the result.

And I want to go to Mars. Let's start dreaming again. Let's explore. Exploration, dreams, wonderment, are the basic stepping stones in developing new technologies, and it would fuel the economy even more.

[NJ_gent]

" I am against this colossal expenditure of funds when we are told there is not sufficient money to secure our borders."

You're against spending money to advance technology and knowledge because some lying politician came up with a ridiculous story to cover the fact that they're pandering to a bunch of border-violating criminals? If we can dump $530 Billion into a socialist medicare system, I think we can afford to secure our borders. If we can dump $2 Trillion into a socialist Social Security program to reorganize that which should be destroyed, then we can afford to secure our borders. The border security problem has nothing to do with money and everything to do with cowards and panderers we've elected to public office.

[Theophilus]

I've never read willfull ignorance put quite so succinctly.

How do you know it's "ignorance" and not revelation? How do you know it's "willfull" and not imposed?

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

[RadioAstronomer]

They just want to prove that evolution is credible and true.

I worked on interplanetary missions at JPL. Not one scientist I worked with stated such.

Note: There is plenty of evidence for evolution right here on this planet.

[Frank_Discussion]

I'm in a unique position: I'm a Moon Society member AND a NASA contractor.

The Moon Society is busting it's butt as fast as it can to accomplish commercial exploration, but without the largess of taxes available to the US governement, it's a tough row to hoe. But we'll "git-r-done", as it were. NASA will get the foothold again, but they're not stepping on private interests, either.

We should, as a nation, get to the Moon and Mars quickly. NASA seems to be screwing it's collective head back on straight to that goal, so that's good. I'm glad to be in the thick of it, too. Groups like the Moon Society and affiliated commercial ventures will keep us off-planet profitably.

[sheltonmac]

Because the scientific discoveries and inventions along the way help to better the lives of Americans

If these things are so important, why not let the free market control where the money is spent?

There's a lot of junk our government wastes our money on; protecting the US and advancing the frontiers of science are not included in that category.

So where in the Constitution is the government authorized to spend my money to advance the frontiers of science? And what does flying to Mars have to do with protecting the U.S.?

[RightWhale]

I think it is unwise to use taxpayers' money

In the absence of allowing private property rights in outer space, having the FedGov develop and maintain preeminence in outer space is the only way this country has a prayer of preserving its liberty in the years to come.

[RightWhale]

I am against this colossal expenditure of funds

The size of the expenditure is insignificant, but it is necessary to our future.