I would've thought USSR would've done it by the 70s if not before Amerika, but it's been 60 years since and no one has done it so far. In fact, it's likely it'll be Amerikans who're back on the moon again before anyone else. WTF is going on here?
I would've thought USSR would've done it by the 70s if not before Amerika, but it's been 60 years since and no one has done it so far. In fact, it's likely it'll be Amerikans who're back on the moon again before anyone else. WTF is going on here?
lol I feel the same way about the Mars thing, at least short-term (next 100 years) not really worth pursuing. Asteroid mining + space manufacturing are the only space race goals I recognize.
Could you imagine rolling the dice on flying out to Mars in this day and age? "Management would just like you to be aware that they see themselves as the bad guys and they understand how disappointed you must be in them as they cut the funding for the department currently keeping in contact with you while you're in orbit. If you do somehow survive the trip back, please be assured that we would be happy to provide you with a glowing letter of recommendation."
The first moon landings required a a lot of funding in a relatively short period of time, and the US government that was funding it decided it would rather shrink the space budget than the war budget. This time (for the Artemis missions), the budget seems stable and the missions less frequent but longer. Plus, if the next-generation superheavy rockets in development (Starship, Long March 9) actually pan out then the cost should decrease further. In other words, there's been a concerted effort to make the upcoming moon missions sustainable. If this principle is applied to Mars then I could see it happening this century. I'm betting on China though. I don't think a private company can do it.
I'm betting on China, too. I just think the US being too "End of History"-brained to go out and actually do anything, especially mega projects of any kind.