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2012-08-29 Science & Technology

NASA likens Mars rover to Armstrong lunar landmark

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Posted by Fred 2012-08-29 00:00|| E-Mail|| Front Page|| [1733 views ] Top

1 I'm waiting for one of the X-Prize companies to suggest firing rockets full of carbon black at the moon, as the fictional Delos D. Harriman suggested. Perhaps a Nike Swoosh?

Posted by Eric Jablow 2012-08-29 07:44|| 2012-08-29 07:44|| Front Page Top

2 Yeah it's a lot like the first lunar walk except that was 43 years ago. By men. It appears NASA is now staffed by the generation of kids who all got a trophy for just participating. Don't get me wrong. It's a great accomplishment, but aside from a more advanced rover, what's the big group grope over a feat that's been done several times before?

Posted by Lowspark 2012-08-29 12:19|| 2012-08-29 12:19|| Front Page Top

3 We have attacked Mars with laser-wielding robots. How cool is that!

I'm not sure that we, as a nation, can do Big Projects anymore, even tradition civil engineering like the interstate highway system. Part of it is lack of nation will and direction, but a bigger factor is regulatory paralysis. You can't build anything nowadays without running a gauntlet of agencies and lawsuits.

But as PurpleGal says, the interesting stuff these days is happening in the private sector. There are a lot of players - from traditional names like Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites to newcomers like John Carmack's Armadillo Aerospace. Exciting times, if the government doesn't try to regulate it to death. Don't fear the future!

Posted by SteveS 2012-08-29 13:09|| 2012-08-29 13:09|| Front Page Top

4 Ther audio message wasn't broadcast from the red planet unless Charles Bolden was physically there. It was broadcast from earth (as a pre-recorded message) and only relayed back [delayed] from mars.

Is NASA reduced to not-so-cheap parlor tricks now? Really sad because they have some great people there.

While I think Curiosity is cool and amazing. They didn't send a cardboard cutout of Neal Armstrong to the moon - they sent the man himself.

Posted by CrazyFool 2012-08-29 13:22|| 2012-08-29 13:22|| Front Page Top

5 Kennedy's 'Moon Speech' - September 12th, 1962
Eagle lands - July 20, 1969

2,504 Days

Thousands of people working together towards the same goal.

Stuff like that may never happen again.

Posted by Mullah Richard 2012-08-29 14:28|| 2012-08-29 14:28|| Front Page Top

6 Mullah, Harry Reid's senate hasn't passed a budget in about that long

Posted by Beavis 2012-08-29 14:36|| 2012-08-29 14:36|| Front Page Top

7 You people do realize that, because B. Hussein was POTUS during the Mars mission, where will be Fatwa proclaiming Mars a Muslim possession?

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2012-08-29 15:36|| 2012-08-29 15:36|| Front Page Top

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