Going to Mars is a bunch of baby steps, and it started off with the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
The purpose of going to Mars is for humans to first begin to occupy, permanently, another planet in the solar system. The astronauts or pilgrims, whatever you might call them, are going to be very historically unique human beings.
The guys who walk on Mars are going to be historic.
I personally think going to Mars, if it takes two years or two and a half years, that's doable. Certainly, the first people who go there, that's going to be a big motivator, being first getting to Mars.
Can you imagine, in 2030, taking a space cruise on the very ship that carried the first human beings to Mars? I can't believe that people wouldn't line up for that possibility.
A zero-gravity flight is a first step toward space travel.
Going to Mars would evolve humankind into a two-planet species.
The space program needs a goal, and the goal should be humans to Mars.
I can remember in early elementary school when the Russians launched the first satellite. There was still so much unknown about space. People thought Mars was probably populated.
We like to talk about pioneering Mars rather than just exploring Mars, because once we get to Mars, we will set up some sort of permanent presence.
There weren't any astronauts until I was about 10. Yuri Gagarin went into space right around my 10th birthday.