• Background: A lunar base project brings the US closer to putting men on mars
• Debate:
• Comparison: ESA and Russia
• Recent Developments:

Background

• Although it has never been a direct, funded goal of NASA and the US Government, the attempt to place a man on Mars is one of the few subjects in Space exploration that has enough excitement to become a possibility in the next 50 years. George W. Bush in particular is interested in the program and approved funding in 2004 to attempt to put lunar bases on the moon by 2020. He stated that a rejuvenated lunar program would just be a stepping stone to later programs, a nod towards Mars.
• "We do not know where this journey will end, yet we know this -- human beings are headed into the cosmos," Bush said when he unveiled the program at NASA headquarters in 2004. "Mankind is drawn to the heavens for the same reason we were once drawn into unknown lands and across the open sea. We choose to explore space because doing so improves our lives and lifts our national spirit." (Source: NASA)

Debate

• On 10 Jan. 2004 Newsweek/MSNBC "Web Exclusive," Patti Davis argued that a mission to Mars would distract from problems at home, namely the Global Warming crisis. She suggested that the funding for the mission-$750 billion-be diverted towards alternative energy research and environmental conservation (Source: MSNBC.com).

Country Comparison

• The European Space Agency has the goal of sending a human mission to Mars by 2030, which it has called the Aurora Program.
• Russia is planning on starting a ground-based biomedical experiment simulating a mission to Mars that is to begin by the end of the year.

Recent Developments