The mission to Mars

[Joseph G]

In the bible God hopelessly confused mankind for trying to reach the heavens in Babylon.

Excellent point. Three things of note about this story...

1) Their aspiration to stop and build a city was for the stated purpose of not being scattered across the earth - in direct defiance of God's command to multiply and go forth and fill the earth.
2) Their aspiration to build the tower was to make a name for themselves, rather than to bring glory to God. Exactly as mankind has done ever since with everything he creates and performs.
3) God's decision to confuse their language was also to prevent them from discovering and developing technology too fast. Imagine how quickly they would have created the nuke and destroyed themselves. God had plans for a much longer epoch of human history - such that He could populate heaven with the precise number of His children which He had foreordained.

Great news for those of the faith!

Genesis 11:1-8 NIV

"Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there."

"They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

"But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower the people were building. The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.”

"So the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city."

God bless!

biblegateway.com

 

[Hans Blaster]

You appear ignorant of the progress made in the science and engineering requirements.

A taller, heavier, smarter version of SpaceX’s Starship is almost ready to fly

Starship will test its payload deployment mechanism on its seventh test flight.

arstechnica.com

SpaceX is quite happy to test and test, explode and break as many prototypes as necessary to get this right and have the benefit of a full commercial operation to support and finance that activity not to mention the richest man in the world and now the American government behind them

That thing isn't taking anyone to Mars and returning them. SpaceX is just building a new heavy lift rocket.

 

[durangodawood]

Talking with yourself?

Yes. Quit interrupting!

 

[Joseph G]

Considering that the moon and the Earth are inextricably linked together, I am pretty sure that this passage of Scripture doesn't apply here.

Just because man ran around the surface for a brief spell, left some footprints, and planted a flag, doesn't mean that he's subdued it and has dominion over it - or been instructed to by God as He did with the earth.

Millions (billions?) of dollars for a bag of rocks. Big hooey!

 

[durangodawood]

....Millions (billions?) of dollars for a bag of rocks. Big hooey!

But it showed we were "better" than commies. So theres that.

 

[Aryeh Jay]

But it showed we were "better" than commies. So theres that.

And now we have a different batch of commies to beat. China cannot be allowed to succeed.

 

[durangodawood]

And now we have a different batch of commies to beat. China cannot be allowed to succeed.

Maybe Mars is the "red planet" for a reason?

 

[Aryeh Jay]

Maybe Mars is the "red planet" for a reason?

Yes, red state republican.

 

[Hans Blaster]

Maybe Mars is the "red planet" for a reason?

It is. The oxygen in the atmosphere combined with surface iron and Mars rusted.

 

[durangodawood]

It is. The oxygen in the atmosphere combined with surface iron and Mars rusted.

Thats some poor maintenance.

 

[Hans Blaster]

Thats some poor maintenance.

"Ya really want that Clear Coat." -- Jerry Lundegren, planet salesman in the Twin Cities.

 

[Chesterton]

Sending a bunch of people to Mars. Elon Musk - history's most creative mass murderer.

 

[Joseph G]

But it showed we were "better" than commies. So theres that.

Woo hoo! LOL!

 

[Nithavela]

There will be enough peasant volunteers to try out the concept before they risk that. I would consider it. If the Musk Mars City vision fails then we have Jeff Bezos waiting in the wings with rotating vegetated habitats.

I think you need to send in some billionaires first. If you don't, who will create the jobs?

 

[NxNW]

But it showed we were "better" than commies. So theres that.

There is a series on Apple TV called For 'All Mankind', which I strongly recommend (regardless of your politics). An alternate timeline of the space program in which Russia lands on the moon first, and the US scrambles to keep up. You see a lot of the same historical figures, but in different situations from the history we know. Lots of great characters and plot twists!

 

[durangodawood]

There is a series on Apple TV called For 'All Mankind', which I strongly recommend (regardless of your politics). An alternate timeline of the space program in which Russia lands on the moon first, and the US scrambles to keep up. You see a lot of the same historical figures, but in different situations from the history we know. Lots of great characters and plot twists!

Ive watched most of season one. Pretty great.

But Im curious how the Soviets will get more involved if the show remains sort of agnostic regarding their totalitarianism.

 

[The IbanezerScrooge]

There is a series on Apple TV called For 'All Mankind', which I strongly recommend (regardless of your politics). An alternate timeline of the space program in which Russia lands on the moon first, and the US scrambles to keep up. You see a lot of the same historical figures, but in different situations from the history we know. Lots of great characters and plot twists!

That sounds super interesting. I saw it on Apple TV, but I thought it was just a biopic about the space program. Didn't realize it was an alternate historical fiction. I'll have to check that out.

 

[mindlight]

That thing isn't taking anyone to Mars and returning them. SpaceX is just building a new heavy lift rocket.

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket – collectively referred to as Starship – represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.

SpaceX

SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft.

www.spacex.com

 

[Hans Blaster]

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket – collectively referred to as Starship – represent a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond.

SpaceX

SpaceX designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft.

www.spacex.com

I'm aware of their delusions.

 

[mindlight]

I'm aware of their delusions.

Talking in soundbites is just irritating.

They will need to deal with radiation and weightlessness for the journey. My favorite schema is joining together 3 or 4 starships in a rotating loop to handle the gravity issue, Simple water barriers may well work for the radiation. But more thought needs to be put into the habitation module.

The basic concept of boosting these ships to geostationary orbit and refueling them for the journey to Mars seems solid and they have the internal space of two large family houses in one of these starships. If they join them in a larger ring, for the journey, then even more. It would be good to make the journey as short as possible as that is a risk factor. The larger the ship the less the psychological strains on the crew cooped together for the long journey.

Once landed toxicity, dust, possible machine failure and loss of key resources are all risk factors. But preparatory robot missions using the same hardware and carrying the necessities for fuel and oxygen, electricity and food production should resolve these issues. If the crops have failed or the base breaks then they should have a window before they even arrive to see this and to come back if necessary.

This should be exciting to someone with a scientific bent as in effect it is one of the most challenging things man has attempted in a long time. Or would you prefer an understanding of science that spends years debating origin theories it cannot prove rather than devoting itself to stuff it has a chance with?