I was thrilled to hear about NASA’s discovery of water on Mars. I am hoping it will contribute to interest in a human mission to Mars. Ideally, such a mission would not be under the banner of a single nation but rather include team members from around the world. Why travel to space at all when there are so many problems to solve here? Many of the problems here have old historical gripes attached to them that will take a long time to overcome. Mars offers a unique opportunity to co-operate glo...

I believe that manned space exploration is essential. There I have said it. Not irrational, not an expensive gimmick, but essential. Why? Some day, leaving Earth may be the only way the human species can go on. Let’s hope that’s not the case, but hope is no substitute for preparation. Species go extinct all the time as their habitat changes dramatically or disappears altogether (these days often due to human impact), but we are the only species that can pro-actively explore new habitats. The ...