[FPSPACE] Is the moon on the path to Mars?

[Jens Kieffer-Olsen]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Matula, Thomas L. [mailto:MATULAT at uhv.edu] 
> Sent: Tuesday, May 17, 2005 1:38 AM

 [snip]
 
> If space is ever going to be more then a fringe element of 
> the economy it must start focusing on goals that clearly 
> benefit the economy. The transcontinental railroad was not 
> built so scientists could hunt dinosaur fossils out west. Of 
> course it allowed them to find and ship tons of dinosaurs 
> fossils home, but the driving force behind the 
> Transcontinetal railroad was economics and national security 
> needs. Opening space will require focusing on the same goals. 

 While certainly true that space economy should become self-
 supporting, it's not achieved by some focusing act of space
 itself. Nor is it achieved by intrepid entrepreneurs alone.

 Hitherto, proposed examples of good returns from space have
 been meagre and predictable. Tourism, fair enough. That IS
 a source of revenue. But Helium-3? Qui bono? Big Guv'ment!

 I envisage the movie industry to become a big spender,
 especially on the Moon which is more affordable to visit
 than Mars. The lunar gravity cannot be engineered in any
 Hollywood studio. Add in the television documentaries,
 which are bound to attract billions of viewers. 

--
Jens Kieffer-Olsen
Slagelse, Denmark