Mars

Why Colonize Mars?

“Because it’s there!”
-George Mallory, English mountaineer

Mars is a barren wasteland devoid of life. There’s nothing there, even less than in the average Earth desert. There is no air to breathe, no water, no arable soil on which to grow crops. It’s just a big empty ball of dust and rock.

A lot of people ask (and with good reason): Instead of wasting massive amounts of valuable resources on some dream project with no apparent value, dumping tons of CO2 into the atmosphere in the process, why not instead spend the money improving life here on Earth?

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In Defense Of Billionaires

You know me:  I see a meme like this, I have to quibble.

Sure, it seems plain enough.  There’s people out there who own more money than a thousand families could use in a lifetime, and at the same time there are kids who can’t buy school lunch, homeless veterans on the streets, and did I mention my underwater mortgage and student loans?  The government’s in debt up to its eyeballs, Social Security is going broke, and who’s gonna pay for it?  Not the billionaires.

All of which is fair enough, so far as it goes.  Thing is, though, (more…)

We’re Going To Mars?

(Picture of empty status board in NASA’s Vehicle Assembly Building.  Image credit Tony Rice.)

Amid all the scandal, the signing on Tuesday of the NASA reauthorization act (now Public Law 115-10) caused almost no noise in the media.  On the face of it, this is a standard funding authorization, and those aren’t usually worthy of much attention.

But slightly below the surface, this law contains several alterations from the present status.  It’s definitely worth a second look. (more…)