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NASA is looking at doing the next big step in manned space exploration, going to an asteroid and to Mars. These are more difficult to accomplish than the previous missions. NASA's attitude is that they have already done the hard part to get to the moon, build shuttles that launched satellites and brought modules up for the space station. Those are things that other organizations can continue doing while NASA aims to solve the next step in exploring ever further in space.
At last somebody with common sense and vision of the future. Thank you.
I have no idea why so many people insist in keep pursuing travels to the ISS or the Moon. That is OLD news and something that somebody else should do. Keeping the Shuttle program is not making the U.S. having the advantage in space exploration. Quite the contrary, it's tying hands around something rusty and increasingly useless.
Remember, the sun and the oceans will not last forever. In about 1 billion years the latter will boil. By that time we _must_ have reached other planets beyond the solar system or humanity will extinguish. Flying to the Moon or to Mars is useless. That won't save us. We have to start furthering the space science and developing the technology that can take us out of this planetary system. And no, 1000 million years is not that of a long time considering all the effort necessary to achieve our goal. We must start NOW.
