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posted by
martyb
on Wednesday June 08 2016, @09:17AM
from the build-a-space-elevator-on-the-moon dept.
from the build-a-space-elevator-on-the-moon dept.
NASA seems hell bent to go to Mars, but can't afford to on its own.
Its international partners have no stomach for that — they would would rather return to our moon and build a base there for further exploration.
Doesn't going back to the moon make more sense? Build a base on the moon, and use its low gravity and possible water at the poles as propellant for further space exploration?
Why not the moon first?
http://www.theverge.com/2016/6/7/11868840/moon-return-journey-to-mars-nasa-congress-space-policy
Links:
From NASA itself, in 2008: https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/series/moon/why_go_back.html
The all-knowing, ever-trustworthy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonization_of_the_Moon
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Should We Skip Mars for Now and Go to the Moon Again?
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(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday June 09 2016, @04:10AM
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday June 09 2016, @04:19PM
> Even basic electronics can be manufactured locally on Mars.
I'm pretty sure the multi-billion dollar ore extraction / purification / processing / fab / packaging electronics industry may disagree with that statement.
Until we find a way to generate millions of kilograms of almost-free O2 and unlimited energy, any manufacturing on another planet is going to be limited ...
> If you're sending 4 tons of supplies every three months just to keep a handful of people alive, then you're doing it wrong.
Tell that to the idiots at Nasa. :)
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday June 09 2016, @04:26PM
I'm pretty sure the multi-billion dollar ore extraction / purification / processing / fab / packaging electronics industry may disagree with that statement.
You're not speaking of basic electronics at that point.
Until we find a way to generate millions of kilograms of almost-free O2 and unlimited energy, any manufacturing on another planet is going to be limited ...
It doesn't need to be anything else. We just need to make what the colony needs plus some extra capacity.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday June 09 2016, @05:04PM
Please define "basic electronics" then.
Because even the simplest diode requires pretty pure materials, and a tightly controlled doping process, to get a somewhat reliable and efficient component.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday June 09 2016, @10:34PM
Because even the simplest diode requires pretty pure materials, and a tightly controlled doping process, to get a somewhat reliable and efficient component.
You don't need the full multi-billion dollar infrastructure for that. We already have hobbyists who can make rudimentary components. And it's worth noting here that the initial research into the first ICs used a lot less money than would be available to any serious colonization effort.