"Eric Chomko" wrote in message
...


I'd be happy to see then bring home some Martian dirt first.

Eric

Exactly. Let's have a race! Starting now let's build a couple of
nex-gen rovers, and a manned missions to the Moon then Mars.
(which is their stated plan)

I think the robots will win by about FORTY YEARS..give or take.
Why anyone /interested in the scienctific aspect/ of exploration would
prefer the long slow expensive route is beyond me. Why, so people
like Buzz or Neal can wow us with their personal meanderings, cliched
poems or 'modern' paintings from Mars?

A sample return isn't needed, we can take the lab there instead.
Much faster.

From the Mars Science Labaratory page...

APXS
"The Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer will measure the abundance
of chemical elements in rocks and soils."...."Its sensor head is designed
to be smaller than a soda can..."

ChemMin
"Designed to be about the size of a laptop computer inside a carrying
case." ..."The Chemistry and Mineralogy instrument, or CheMin for
short, will identify and measure the abundances of various minerals
on Mars.' "To prepare rock samples for analysis, the rover will be
able to drill into rocks, collect the resulting fine powder, sieve it, and
deliver it to a sample holder. It will use a scoop for collecting soil...."

"MAHLI will provide earthbound scientists with close-up views of the
minerals, textures, and structures in martian rocks and the surface layer
of rocky debris and dust. The self-focusing, roughly 4-centimeter-wide
(1.5-inch-wide) camera will take color images of features as small as
12.5 micrometers, smaller than the diameter of a human hair."

"The Mast Camera, or Mastcam for short, will take color images and
color video footage of the Martian terrain. One of the two Mastcam
camera systems has a moderate-resolution lens, similar to the
Pancam on the Mars Exploration Rovers. The other camera
system has a high-resolution lens in order to study the landscape
far from the rover."

RAD
"The Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) will be one of the first
instruments sent to Mars specifically to prepare for future human
exploration. The size of a small toaster or six-pack of soda,..."

ChemCam
"Looking at rocks and soils from a distance, ChemCam will fire a laser
and analyze the elemental composition of vaporized materials from areas
smaller than 1 millimeter on the surface of Martian rocks and soils."

SAM
"The Sample Analysis at Mars instrument suite will take up more than half
the science payload on board the Mars Science Laboratory rover and
feature chemical equipment found in many scientific laboratories on Earth.
Provided by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Sample Analysis at
Mars will search for compounds of the element carbon, including methane,
that are associated with life and explore ways in which they are generated
and destroyed in the martian ecosphere."

DAN
"...the Mars Science Laboratory rover will carry a pulsing neutron generator
called the Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons that will be sensitive enough to
detect water content as low as one-tenth of 1 percent and resolve layers
of water and ice beneath the surface."


http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/...nts/index.html



I find it telling that more than half the science payload is devoted to the
search for life on Mars. Must be the idea of life on Mars is no longer
the fringe view eh?

And keep in mind the big question is about life elsewhere. The big draw or
allure of Mars is in answering this most timeless question of all.
Once that question is answered, the desire to go there will evapoarate.

Just like interest in the Moon and Apollo evaporated directly after the
successful landings