I really think we should be teaming up with the Indians. At least they show some ambition.
NASA is such a waste. We spent billions and all we got was a couple of rocks from the moon. We need to take all that money and use it to end poverty. It will then be a much better place in which to live. //sarc
I don’t see a need for this. I say we fix things here on Earth. I hope they cut more. It is ridiculous to build a Base Station on the Moon. We are currently building bases in Iraq and Afganistan. I think that should be our priority. Let the other countries take the lead on this and more importantly SPEND THEIR OWN MONEY ON THIS. You think maybe they will all move up there and leave us alone.
The powers that be do not want us off this rock,that leads to colonies and Independence!
There is no way, this power hungry government will risk funding colonies that they eventually will not be able to control.
They want us earth bound and dumbed down.
7 May 2009, 1111 hrs IST, Srinivas Laxman, TNN
MUMBAI: India’s successful moonshot, Chandrayaan-1, has not only enriched the country’s brand value but also flooded Isro offices with more than a lakh job applications from youngsters, which the space agency’s officials say is unprecedented.
V Jayaraman, director of Isro’s Hyderabad-based National Remote Sensing Agency , told TOI on Wednesday that Chandrayaan’s success has spurred the demand for jobs in Isro. “The organisation has acquired a glamour value thanks largely to the moon mission, and students in standard X and XI from all over India are knocking on our door,’’ he said.
Jayaraman said that at present there were more than 1.35 lakh applications for a mere 300 openings in different categories at Isro. He said that from among the applicants, about 70,000 students qualified for the entrance examination which was held on April 26. About 46,000 actually took the test.
“From centres like Mumbai, New Delhi and Chennai, we usually receive on average about 4,000 to 5,000 applications. But this year the figure from these places has shot up,’’ Jayaraman said. He cited the economic slowdown as a possible factor for the surge in applications.
Isro’s chief spokesperson S Satish said that many people who had left Isro for IT organisations now wanted to return to the space agency. Source
NASA is fixated on pure research, which for them has degenerated into reinventing the wheel. For this reason, NASA needs to take a back seat, let someone else do the practical work, and then once it is done, NASA can sublet floorspace in the Moon base to do its thing.
So whoever is practical needs to do three things. Identify and overcome obstacles. Build and improve the Moon base. And accomplish a profitable purpose in doing so.
The obstacles are vacuum, extremes of heat and cold, cosmic and enhanced radiation, and extremely abrasive Lunar dust. The way to overcome these is by living in underground habitations. Surface habitations are fragile and short lived, have cramped space, and use enormous amounts of cargo space and weight.
This means that nuclear powered hard rock mining robots need to be sent to the Moon, where they can tunnel and prepare those tunnels for use, for several years before people arrive. They do not have to be fast, only methodical, and their landing craft can be cannibalized for use as pressure doors, reinforcing rod, ceiling, and flooring.
However, the purpose of going to the Moon as a profitable enterprise is far more problematic. It’s biggest advantage is as a launching pad for further space exploration, likely to Mars, and astronomy.
Monstrose - Space Station # 5
Start, with the sun
And move on out
The future’s in the skies above
The heavens unfold
And a new star is born
Space and time makin’ love
Chorus:
Oh what a time we had
Living on the ground
I’ve moved to station #5
See you next time around,
Next time aournd
As far you want, as close as you need
It’s all in the mind, you know
This old world hasn’t really seen it’s day
It’s here, time to go
Chorus
Remember when it was so clear
We were young, but the memory still remains
To pick fruit from a tree
Fish from the seas
Now nothing’s left here, but the stains
Well I can’t cry no more
Can only be glad
There’s other places we can be
If the time suits you right
I’m leaving tonight
Come fly away
With me!
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah
Oh, yeah
Start, with the sun
And move on out
The future’s in the skies above
The heavens unfold
A new star is born
Space and time makin’ love
Chorus