[The_Victor]

That being the case, I am more than happy with unmanned vehicles. The view is just as good from my seat.

If we're not eventually going to send people, then the unmanned probes are purely academic, cool but pointless.

[Physicist]

If we're not eventually going to send people, then the unmanned probes are purely academic, cool but pointless.

What's the difference, from where you're sitting? It's not like you personally are going to get to go. All you'll ever do, whether we send probes or astronauts, is to look at the pictures and maybe analyze the data. The probes deliver both more cheaply, and in greater quantity.