Buzz Aldrin on the moon, 1969
Posted on 07/05/2009 3:26:44 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
The NASA astronaut Buzz Adrin has called for the world to press on with establishing a human settlement on Mars to offer the younger generation much-needed objectives.
The second person to walk on the moon said that setting up habitation on the surface of the red planet was a "wonderful objective" for humanity.
Buzz Aldrin on the moon, 1969
Given the backdrop of the ailing world economy, space exploration could offer younger generations much-needed goals, the 79-year-old said.
"I think we need to look quite a way down into the future to inspire our young people with that greatness.
"America helped to take the world to the moon 40 years ago and America certainly can help lead the world in the direction of Mars."
After he entered the history books Dr Aldrin said he struggled through a dark time during which he did not know what he should be doing with his life.
He battled depression and alcoholism, but has now been sober for 30 years and married to his wife Lois for 23 years.
The former astronaut said he was aware he had a unique perspective on the universe and had tried to share this with others.
"Not that many people have been on the moon and that's why I have written two children's books and I am involved in modern communication with a website and Twitter," he said.
"I try and communicate with people - recently I got together with a few experts and did a rap session that you can download."
But while trying to spread the word about the possibilities of space, Dr Aldrin said he was sceptical of climate change theories.
"I think the climate has been changing for billions of years," he said.
"If it's warming now, it may
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Sheilding a craft against radiation is easy, getting a lead lined spacecraft to orbit is a bit tougher.
Martians have the answers ???
The problem with establishing a colony on Mars is that Mars has only a very weak magnetic field and the cosmic rays from the sun would kill you.
And we blame the libtards for America’s apathy.
Mars?! And this will bring peace? LOL!! Just gives us another battlefield.
Yeah that’s the big one as I see it. pretty much have to go underground.
The radiation stopping power of any material is proportional to its mass. There is nothing special about lead except that it is pretty dense. All of this added to the distance spells a truly gargantuan craft. Meanwhile, we can send all the robots we please to Mars now in a reasonably sized vessel.
What about the UFO bases on the dark side of the moon?
Have they complied with this?
There is no dark side of moon really, as a matter of fact, it's all dark.
Any company trying to make a profit exploiting those is going to get its butt kicked.
That leaves us with space tourism, which will be (and is) outrageously expensive in the early years.
OK fine whatever you say. LOL
I’ve said much the same for years.
The 60’s were heady years because we, as a nation, spent a lot of time and energy focused on achieving a big goal that transcended all of us.
That got lost as soon a Presidents Johnson put forth the goal of destroying the Black family through his Great Society, and huge amounts of money, time, and national focus got redirected to achieve that goal.
Both goals have been met, but I still feel a burst of pride when thinking about the moon landings, much less about the destruction of the Black families.
There is no dark side of moon really, as a matter of fact, it's all dark.
Actually isn't the side that faces us darker than the side that faces away from us?
I would rather develop a plan to mine asteroids.
And just what are we going to get that way, that won’t be far cheaper to get directly on terra firma?
I think its a great idea. We should press ahead asap. Civilisations grow by doing things, not hunkering down.
But it cant be all about profit - and anyway, how do you know what is or isnt out there? Mars has a bigger surface land area than Earth does.
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