Frank Douglas
Professor Chase Hart
ENG 121
8 November 2016
Is Mars or Earth’s Moon the place to start space colonization?
Colonizing Mars is not just an idea, it’s something we should consider. Stephen Hawking said, “If the human race is to continue for another million years, we will have to boldly go where no one has gone before.” The survival of our species depends on space colonization. Say for instance, 66 million years ago an asteroid hit Mexico which wiped out the dinosaurs and its not a matter of if it will happen again, it’s a matter of when another global extinction type of asteroid will hit Earth. Although going to Mars is the goal, the moon should be the first place to colonize and by doing so, creates a blue print to the colonization
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The first is the Earth-Moon cycler which is an orbit that periodically passes close by the earth and the moon, using gravity assists and occasional propellant-powered corrections to maintain its trajectories between the two (Crowley, 2010). With Earth-Moon cycler, hundreds of rounds trips can be made in the time that an Earth-Mars cycler makes. The cost will be much less traveling from Earth to the moon than to Mars. Per NASA, it will cost around $240 million per flight for a trip from Earth to the Moon, whereas, a trip from Earth to Mars would cost over $5 billion per flight. Since life support and consumables are much less onerous for a short trip than a long trip, there is a lower mass requirement for crew transfer flights to the Moon and much less depreciation of capital in transit (Dinkin, …show more content…
From an engineering point of view, going to Moon, Earth rescue can be done for certain kinds of failures. A mission to Mars would be impossible to do. NASA has concluded with its shuttle return to flight efforts, having a rescue ship and a space station to go to failure recovery is possible without increased capability from existing hardware (NASA, 2016). The distance from Earth to the Moon allows for last-minute planning. With Earth being a few days away from the Moon, a supplies mission can have last minute changes to its plan. Which means there would be less spares that need to be kept on hand to guarantee the same level of safety as in a Mars mission. The short distance between the Moon and Earth allow Earth based teleoperation to be a substitution to human operation and robotics. This leverages the capability of capital equipment on the Moon (NASA, 2016). Important information can be learned in colonizing the moon before Mars. By doing so, will increase the possibility of success of colonizing Mars. Economically, colonizing the Moon would create tourism industry that could result in a strong lunar economy that does not need to be subsidized as early as 2030 (Dinkin, 2004). There would still need to be imports from Earth, but every nation on Earth has imports, so becoming self-sufficient in all
"Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation may never come again. But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy...
If human kind is to conquer the solar system and reach for the stars, we must first start closer to home. In such a situation, creating a colony on our nearest partner celestial body, the Moon, would create an ideal opportunity to learn and explore technical capabilities and human characteristics in space. On board, there would be plenty of science to do, plenty of fun to be had, and plenty of knowledge to learn. However, a lunar base of this kind of complexity can not just be slapped together; it must be designed and detailed beforehand to ensure a safe working environment for those inside and around the lunar base.
Again, I’ll agree that the budget is a large amount, but Michael Griffin, former NASA administrator said it best during a presentation to aerospace leaders in 2009; “What we do is huge, and we do it for chump change – less than the annual market for pizza,” the pizza market at the time being $27 billion (Spires). Space exploration benefits everyone. I’ll leave you with this to consider the next time you’re waiting for your GPS app to load on your phone, (brought to you by NASA technology). The moon is an abundant source of Helium-3. Helium-3 produces a clean nuclear reaction – no toxic waste. Why would you want to reduce funding to an organization researching this?
On May 25, 1961, Congress met in a joint session to hear the American president, John F. Kennedy, address them in a speech he referred to as a second State of the Union. In his speech, the young president geared America for a race that would send men to the moon. Kennedy challenged America to “take longer strides” and to take a “leading role in space achievement, which, in many ways, may hold the key to our future on earth” (Burrows 330-331). America rose to the challenge, and within a decade, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were walking on the moon, becoming the first of the human race to walk on a world besides our own. The giant strides of which Kennedy challenged us soon slowed to a crawl, however, and after a few more missions, America would not go back again, possibly for good. America would soon turn its attention to other earthly issues, and its moon program would become nothing more than a memory. This gives rise to an inevitable question: should humans return to the moon? This question has haunted us for years, continuously rising and then fading away again. In recent months, new discoveries have brought it to the forefront, and with these new discoveries, the answer becomes obvious: humans should once again set their sights for the heavens, and putting a civilian lunar base and colony on the moon should be our next step.
Going to the moon doesn’t happen in a second, you need some preparation and a plan for the whole thing. The whole mission costed 25.4 billion dollars which is equivalent to 161.5 billion dollars today. That money was used to complete experiments and of course buy the equipment for the rocket ship. 10 years before the mission NASA was experimenting with new technology. 52 experiments took place for only 10 missions. In every single relatively big thing you do you need a plan, but you need a plan to complete a every goal.
With more funding, NASA can build a manned base on the moon while finding a way to Mars. In going along with this plan, there will be more demand for scientists and engineers alike. Engineers will build the manned bases and vessels, while scientists occupy them and gather data to benefit the world. In this way, NASA will be able to see if it is possible to make Mars the next “Earth”, making plans to help make that reality if this does happen. “Through space exploration and innovative thinking, NASA has injected science and inspiration into our culture and projected us into the future”
Landing on the moon was a monumental event, not just for Americans, but for the whole world. In 1969, America sent the first man to the moon, Neil Armstrong. This was important because during that time America and the Soviet Union were in a race to see who had the strongest space travel. Neil Armstrong's famous words will forever echo throughout space and time.
We chose to go to the moon for many reasons –for science, technological advancement, even for the exploration of new worlds –yet why have we not continued to do so? Today in the year 2014, government funding for NASA has been cut exponentially since the days of Apollo. The United States no longer has the need for the continuation of manned space travel. The Cold War is long over along with the Soviet Union, which defeats the need to continue to exceed Russia with our technology. The purpose behind why the United States chose to go to the moon was not for the pure sake of science, but for the interests of the Cold War.
The real reason we never went back to the moon stemmed from American domestic politics. After the first moon landing, public and political opinion clamored to bring the lunar exploration program to an end to address more earthly concerns, such as poverty and environmental
As a country we need to start investing more money and research into space technology. Programs currently exist for this effort, but the potential for research and progress is limited by a lack of funding; compared to other government funded programs, aerospace funding is pitiful. Continued research in space technology is a necessary step in our growth and development not just as a country but also as entire human race. If we are to achieve this goal, it is necessary to increase funding for space research and technology and consider the possibility of colonizing outer space. If we limit our existence to the planet Earth, and continue to drain the resources on this planet, we will destroy the only home we have.
Mars is our next best hope in life on another planet. Because of science mankind can grow and harvest plants in the modified mars soil, make a thick warm atmosphere, and drink no frozen mars water. Mankind can grow and flourish more as a species with this idea of colonizing mars. With more scientific advancements we can colonize mars and we will colonize mars.
Therefore, due to the overwhelming social, economic, and scientific technological advancements that have been made because of space exploration, the stakes and sacrifices made do not outweigh the benefits contributed. It is evident that the moon had a lasting effect on the world and it still remains one of the highest achievements of human work and ingenuity.
We can train crews on the Moon.” (Ball). Since Mars has a lesser gravity than Earth, it would seem only logical to exploit the Moon as a way to prepare future colonists. Now all they have to worry about is landing on the surface of the Red Planet
The recent events regarding the NASA Mars probes have renewed the debate of reinstalling manned space missions with the objectives of exploring and landing on foreign worlds such as the moon and the red planet Mars, rather than the use of solely robotic craft and machines. It is my belief that we should return to the days of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, those of manned lunar landings and manned space exploration. Robots simply cannot and should not be allowed to be the sole means of visiting these worlds, nor should humans only be able to witness new findings second hand through the use of computers and machines. It is human nature to be normally curious of one’s surroundings, and it is important that we send one of our own to new worlds. The effects that past missions have had on the world’s people, as well as our political and cultural climates are another valid reason for flesh instead of metal to lay claim to space. Also, the limitless applications and new education that manned flights can bring to us from on site human interactions could lead to another technological and industrial revolution like the original lunar programs had done for us during the Gemini and Apollo programs.
“Why should we go into space? What is the justification for spending all the effort and money on getting a few lumps of moon rocks? Aren’t there better causes here on Earth?”- Stephen Hawking. Space is the everlasting, ever growing place where we happen to reside. From the beginning of intelligent life here on Earth, we have wanted to learn. Whether it be simply constructing a fire, or solving the riddles that still puzzle us to this day. Many of the questions we still have are pertaining to space. Are we alone? How did we get here? Where are we going? Many answers can come from exploring space. Getting a “few lumps of moon rock” can answer so many questions we asked ourselves for millennia. Can we truly belong in a place we do not know about? Space exploration will better us now and in the future for several reasons.