Scientists are actually excited that Trump promised to send a manned mission back to the Moon.
(Mirror Daily, the United States) – Many scientists voiced their optimism about the plan after Donald Trump promised to send another manned crew back to the Moon before a manned mission to Mars.
Earlier this month, the President signed into law directive to instruct NASA to first send human explorers to the Moon. The directive does not include details about the funding and a timeline. After signing the document, Trump said the next lunar mission would do more than just plant a flag and leave a footprint. It would prepare a future mission to the Red Planet.
Several scientists attending the American Geophysical Union’s event in New Orleans agreed to discuss the initiative with Space.com. While some said they were excited about the new mission to the moon, others were less enthusiastic.
Scientists Want the President to Send Explorers Back to the Moon
Alan Stern who leads NASA’s New Horizons mission expressed his enthusiasm, praising the new administration for understanding the value of space exploration for the U.S. as a world power. He believes space exploration could be very similar to the discovery of the Americas in the 16th century.
University of California researcher Stephen Kane thinks Mars’ colonization is not such a far-fetched scenario since Australia is “slightly more hostile than Mars”. He noted that colonists to the Americas needed constant replenishment from Europe before they could live on their own there. This will be the case with Mars explorers as well, Kane told reporters.
Geophysicist John Burgener believes that setting human bases on the Moon could help prevent incoming impactors from hitting the Earth. Astronauts will be able to track such hazardous space rocks from the lunar bases and use technology to divert the asteroids and comets coming too close to our planet. Burgener noted that Mars is not a strategic location to be at when a hazardous space rock heads to our home planet.
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