Japan lands on the moon for first time in comeback attempt

[Procrustes Stretched]

I can see justifying a manned Mars mission because it is a cool thing to do.
I can’t see a justification that it is superior to what can be achieved with rovers.

I don’t think the objective of sending humans to explore far from earth is worthwhile.

Again, more R2D2, less Buck Rogers

"I can see justifying a manned Mars mission because it is a cool thing to do." I can't. Unless it's a private thing. Tax payers shouldn't be paying for cool.

I'm not sure anyone is arguing about the superiority.

I guess the justification of sending humans to explore far from earth is worthwhile in the sense that ... here's an argument put forth:

Primary and Secondary Objectives


We argue that the goals of a human spaceflight program should satisfy three criteria:

1. They should only be accomplishable by human presence.
2. They should have benefits that exceed the opportunity costs.
3. They should be worth the risk to, and loss of, human life.

The Future of Human Spaceflight: Objectives and Policy Implications in a Global Context | American Academy of Arts and Sciences

www.amacad.org

Your Buck Rogers analogy falls flat, since no one is arguing we replicate that

 

[martybegan]

True

But if a robot fails, you try, try again
It is significantly cheaper than a manned mission

If a manned mission fails, people die
Apollo 1 failed and 3 people died
Apollo 13 failed and almost cost lives

And we lost two Shuttle Crews. It's part of the risk of Space exploration.

Besides the deep ocean we've run out of places to explore on this planet. The human spirit requires going places PEOPLE have not gone before. Robots are fine for a first wave, but our species needs to spread out using the methods we currently have in the hope that FTL tech isn't just the realm of Sci-Fi.

 

[rightwinger]

The human spirit requires going places PEOPLE have not gone before. Robots are fine for a first wave, but our species needs to spread out using the methods we currently have in the hope that FTL tech isn't just the realm of Sci-Fi.

Which is what terminated the Apollo program
Once we beat the Soviets, nobody cared to see Astronauts driving around the moon

Same thing will happen with Mars. They will make a big deal of the first person to step on Mars and then lose interest.

 

[martybegan]

Which is what terminated the Apollo program
Once we beat the Soviets, nobody cared to see Astronauts driving around the moon

Same thing will happen with Mars. They will make a big deal of the first person to step on Mars and then lose interest.

Hopefully not.

And the thing is we have Private Companies involved this time around.

 

[rightwinger]

Hopefully not.

And the thing is we have Private Companies involved this time around.

Private Companies want to see a profit. Namely selling rides to NASA
Suppose we establish a permanent colony on the moon with Re supply missions every few months. Who is going to care about reports that the Astronauts went for a walk today?
Nobody cares about the astronauts who spend a year on the Space Station.
How quickly will be lose interest with men on the moon?

 

[martybegan]

Private Companies want to see a profit. Namely selling rides to NASA
Suppose we establish a permanent colony on the moon with Re supply missions every few months. Who is going to care about reports that the Astronauts went for a walk today?
Nobody cares about the astronauts who spend a year on the Space Station.
How quickly will be lose interest with men on the moon?

The ISS is still up there.

 

[there4eyeM]

The Moon is just a stepping stone for Japan. The real goal is the home of the Goddess who begat them.

 

[ThirdTerm]

SLIM became Japan's first successful landing on the moon, and the fifth country in the world to do so.
However, there were problems that had arisen, such as the solar panels not generating electricity after the landing, and the overall score was just 60 out of 100. Moreover, the live video does not give a visual confirmation of the moon landing, looking like a computer game. I'm more impressed by the female interpreter who could explain scientific details as the event progressed.