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Quietly, NASA is reconsidering the moon as a destination
Houston Chronicle ^ | April 3, 2015 | Eric Berger

Posted on 04/04/2015 12:59:51 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife

Despite a declaration from President Barack Obama that the moon is not a planned destination for American astronauts, senior NASA engineers have quietly begun reconsidering using it as a staging point for an eventual mission to Mars.

William Gerstenmaier, the chief of human exploration for NASA, does not see the president's plan of a direct, 900-day mission to the red planet as achievable. Instead, Gerstenmaier believes large amounts of ice at the lunar poles may provide an important reservoir of oxygen and hydrogen fuel to propel rockets and spaceships across the 40 million miles of space to Mars.

"If propellant was available from the moon, this could dramatically lower the mass needed from the Earth for a NASA Mars mission," Gerstenmaier said.

NASA officials have begun talking about an "Evolvable Mars Campaign," which recognizes the technical and financial challenges of reaching Mars, and the likelihood that the United States would not support an all-out, Apollo-like plan.

But Gerstenmaier and senior NASA officials remain in a delicate position when it comes to speaking of the moon publicly.

President Obama established his space policy for NASA during a 2010 speech at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and it did not include stopping at the moon.

"I just have to say pretty bluntly here, we've been there before," the President said. Instead, Obama directed NASA to visit an asteroid in the 2020s and proceed directly to Mars in the 2030s. This marked a decisive split from President George W. Bush, who had NASA developing plans to live and work on the moon, testing technology and mining resources there, before shooting for Mars.

Gerstenmaier, a widely respected engineer who has overseen NASA's human spaceflight program since 2005, appears to be steering the agency back toward a program that would more fully utilize the moon....

(Excerpt) Read more at houstonchronicle.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: apollo; cislunar; elonmusk; lunarresources; manned; mars; marsdirect; marsone; moon; nasa; space; spaceexploration; spaceflight; spacex
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To: samtheman

Some brain dead politician is sure we put a flag there too. I guess the bots will find it one day.


61 posted on 04/04/2015 6:31:18 AM PDT by wally_bert (There are no winners in a game of losers. I'm Tommy Joyce, welcome to the Oriental Lounge.)
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

Check with the Moon Nazis before setting down....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py_IndUbcxc


62 posted on 04/04/2015 6:33:04 AM PDT by wally_bert (There are no winners in a game of losers. I'm Tommy Joyce, welcome to the Oriental Lounge.)
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

NASA should start by building a dependable American rocket engine...for a change.


63 posted on 04/04/2015 6:42:32 AM PDT by mac_truck ( Aide toi et dieu t aidera)
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To: Gene Eric
OMG, how embarrassing it must be to land on the moon...

Any Man-in-the-Moon worshiping muslim would be embarrassed that a kafir ground his boot on his face.

64 posted on 04/04/2015 7:40:26 AM PDT by null and void (He who kills a tyrant (i.e. an usurper) to free his country is praised and rewarded ~ Thomas Aquinas)
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To: Cincinatus' Wife
Everything to kill American strength - that’s what this administration has worked to achieve.

EVERYTHING obama does either:

a) Weakens America/Americans
b) Distances America's allies
c) Strengthens America's enemies
d) Serves Islam
e) Harms Israel
Or some combination of the above.
There are NO counter examples.
65 posted on 04/04/2015 7:41:13 AM PDT by null and void (He who kills a tyrant (i.e. an usurper) to free his country is praised and rewarded ~ Thomas Aquinas)
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To: Cvengr
Why go to Mars, when the Martians always come here? /Sheila Jackson Lee

The sad part? That could be an actual quote.

It isn't is it? Is it???

66 posted on 04/04/2015 7:45:55 AM PDT by null and void (He who kills a tyrant (i.e. an usurper) to free his country is praised and rewarded ~ Thomas Aquinas)
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To: xp38
I agree. There is no pressing need for a human presence on Mars. Drones on Mars would be very cool.

Sure. You say that now.

You'll be singing a different tune when the sun gets old and swells to the size of the earth's orbit!

67 posted on 04/04/2015 7:48:46 AM PDT by null and void (He who kills a tyrant (i.e. an usurper) to free his country is praised and rewarded ~ Thomas Aquinas)
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To: mdmathis6

Forget the gold. Water ice is worth its weight/mass in gold.


68 posted on 04/04/2015 9:14:47 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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To: Cincinatus' Wife
The moon as a staging area for further space exploration is such an obviously good idea that people who consider themselves to be far more intelligent than everyone else would consider it embarrassingly stupid.
69 posted on 04/04/2015 9:18:37 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (If obama speaks and th<uere is no one the<ire to hear it, is it still a lie?)
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To: dr_lew

I believe when Neil Armstrong took that first step on the Moon was the peak of American power. (sadly I wasn’t alive to see it)

It has been in decline ever since, with exception for a few bright spots here and there.


70 posted on 04/04/2015 10:46:41 AM PDT by KoRn (Department of Homeland Security, Certified - "Right Wing Extremist")
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To: null and void

Yes, but long before then multiple large asteroids will have eradicated Humans on the Earth and transformed the face of the Earth into a molten mass while greatly accelerating the thinning of the atmosphere to a small percentage of its current mass and pressure.


71 posted on 04/04/2015 11:45:13 AM PDT by WhiskeyX
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To: Louis Foxwell
"Good thing O does not read FR or the Houston Chronicle."

At least not while eating, Not anymore.


72 posted on 04/04/2015 1:56:51 PM PDT by clearcarbon
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To: dr_lew
"China landed that rover which lasted one lunar day."


73 posted on 04/04/2015 1:57:52 PM PDT by clearcarbon
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To: bytesmith

Tell him we put in 18 holes and he’ll go himself! I’m all for that.


74 posted on 04/04/2015 2:00:28 PM PDT by Rastus
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To: Tucker39

Right, put them there and leave them ...


75 posted on 04/04/2015 2:02:28 PM PDT by Let's Roll (Before it can get any better it has to stop getting worse - vote 4 most conservative available)
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To: mcshot
"With Muslims the focal point an endless deep space mission is in order. Weld some buses together strap on some nukes and give them some cameras and touch her off. Call it the headless camel express to jihad."

Muslim Aeronautics and Space Administration.


76 posted on 04/04/2015 2:06:00 PM PDT by clearcarbon
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To: Cincinatus' Wife

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/04/150404215343.htm


77 posted on 04/04/2015 7:26:18 PM PDT by samtheman
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To: samtheman

Yes. Potentially lava tubes are a great resource. But first the water ice at the poles (not were these lava tubes are) is what they call an “enabling” resource to get the ball rolling. Apparently there is almost constant sunlight in areas of the polls near the water ice source (inside sunless craters).

Thank you for adding the link. There really is so much to learn and to do there.


78 posted on 04/05/2015 1:00:14 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
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