Let's go to Mars

[ray_MAN]

Hopefully most of you know, the Unsited States has found as strong evidence that there was, or still is, water on Mars. Briefly after NASA made this announcement, President George W. Bush said that he hopes to go to Mars ASAP. According to the post ASAP won't be happening very soon:
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/19613.htm
I saved this article and I have started my greatest undertaking. I plan to try to design the air craft that will take the astronauts to Mars. As most of you know, I am no genius and I am very young. But many times I have built/drew/modelled things that were original and aerodynamic. I am posting this here because I am asking your help. I know most of you here are very good at this kind of stuff, and if we all work together, we might have a feasable project to submit to NASA, the President, Congress, or whoever will listen and put this plan into affect. Please. I hope this will work. Once I get more people than me on board, I will tell you my plan that just might work.

 

[mchammer75040]

Can you scan some of these drawings and post them? I would be intrested in helping, BUT I dont know anything about designing aircrafts and such. Not trying to destroy your dreams but they more than likely have teams of people already doing this, but I wont put that doubt in your mind-anything is possible as long as you put your mind to it!

 

[Direwolf]

Hehe. Well, good luck to you. Not that I wouldn't love to see us heading to Mars as soon as we can, the competition over how to do it has existed for a few decades now. Some have even gone beyond the theoretical and tried erecting habitats here on Earth to test the feasibility of some of their plans.
The fact that we can get water on Mars is an excellent boon though. Means the ability to have drinking water, fuel, and air.

 

[ray_MAN]

OK, seeing as how the paper just came out today and I was having surgery, I didn't have any time to get any work done. But, if you want maybe tomorrow, if I can get my scanner working, I can scan a few drawings. Please reply. I am serious about this.

 

[Murray_H]

I know you are being serious, but do you know the logistics involved in getting humans into orbit, let alone to Mars and back?

You'll need a shit load of oxygen, food, water and fuel, about 2 years worth i think it said in the article. Then you gotta get all that onto a craft which can take off, get to the earth's escape velocity and then travel the X millions of miles to Mars and back.

I'm not trying to put you off doing it, i'm just saying that they would be more likely to get a design that functions from the NASA people - due to them knowing the exact requirements of a space craft.

But still go ahead with it, it could make some nice concept art for NASA and possibly inspire them too And mod teams may also be interested in your work, you said your designs are aerodynamic - this will add to the realism of mods if the craft could actually fly

 

[marksmanHL2 :)]

Just so you know aerodynamics isnt such a big deal in space


But I bet you knew that



Anyway, it'll be interesting to see what ship designs you come up with. I might be able to nab some ideas for my mod like Murray_H said.
With your permision of cause.


Well, good luck...

 

[ray_MAN]

Thanks guys. The article said ther were concerned about solar radiation, so I was hoping to design something to take that and transfer it into energy/fuel/whatever else.

 

[FortisVir]

As much as I admire your initiative, I agree with Pendragon.

With that said, good luck I guess lol :thumbs:

 

[ray_MAN]

Yes, I thought about that Pen. I just figured this would either inspire NASA or anyone.

 

[ray_MAN]

We will make them. Seriously. I have a way. Nothing is confirmed yet of course.

 

[fizzlephox]

Well I have evidence that if us Americans go to Mars we might spark an intergalactic conflict. So I think it's best we let a Canadian kid and his online buddies go there first to try and find out what we need to give them to let NASA land there peacefully.

 

[ray_MAN]

Thanks Pen. I like your skepticism. Seriously.

 

[Onions]

rofl
.

 

[fizzlephox]

Cost of funding a mission to Mars? Billions of dollars and thousands of highly skilled scientists, engineers, technicians, janitors, secretaries, and various others spending entire chunks of their lives working towards a goal.

Cost of a Canadian teenager's blind ambition and optimism? Nothing.

But good luck anyways....

 

[ray_MAN]

American teenager.

 

[Bad^Hat]

I have to say my respect for Ray has just gone up a few notches, although it's kind of silly I like the attitude you're taking about the whole thing. I just really hope this doesn't end in dissapointment for ya

 

[Brian Damage]

Well... I have my own plans for projects like this one, which may not be fulfilled for decades yet. The scepticism in this thread reminds me of those people who told that dude that he couldn't build a cruise missle himself, and even if he did it'd cost him millions of dollars... so he went and built one from off-the-shelf components costing mere thousands. And it worked.

That being said, I hope you don't overreach yourself. If you want a tip, do some research on betavoltaics.

 

[Farrowlesparrow]

Madness. Thats just the conditioning we dont want. We are told so much over the years that all we should do is get our heads down and work 50 years till we die; and thats the best life we can achieve.

I hope people who have ambitions like this suceed to show the world that you can do what you want if you put your mind to it, you dont have to just exist, you live


If it doesnt work then it doesnt matter, at least you tried. People who are cynical and say it cant be done are the ones who will regret it when they die.

 

[GhostValkyrie]

Don't listen to them, ray_MAN. Sure, NASA will probably not listen, but at least you'll know you actually tried to do something. Besides, when we disarm Mars of it's WoMDs, you'll know your effort was for the greater good of America.

All jokes aside, don't listen to them. You live your life how you want, don't let skepticism get in the way of things that are important to you.

 

[LittleB]

It can be done, ofcourse, but with current technology (and probably future tech) it is much too expensive to be practical. Sure, maybe we can send 10, or 20, or even 100 people to Mars, but so what? Just so we can see if life was on Mars? Well, I don't know about you people, but I have no doubts in the existence of life in other solar systems.

 

[Farrowlesparrow]

We can do it because its there to do...Who cares if there is life, we can say that our generation went to mars. Dont you want that? Pushing forward when we are only on the verge of being able to do it is what makes the world advance faster.

 

[LittleB]

No I don't really think we should attempt any scientific or technological innovations until we improve our societal and cultural interactions.

 

[GhostValkyrie]

My God. It's that kind of thinking that prevents mankind from making anything of itself. People have to decide to improve society, not the Government. God forbid the Govt. ever have it's say in the functionality of society. Anyway, I think this will be great.

 

[Razor]

American teenager.

If Hollywood movies have taught me anything, it is that American teenagers can build and pilot rocket ships and space ships in huge intergallactic space battles, going to Mars shouldn't be a problem .

If you need any help, then i will be very happy to help you in anything and everything you need, not that i could help with much, sorry .

 

[fizzlephox]

Well, I guess I'm sorry and I wish the best of luck to you. But I don't have much confidence in you actually achieving anything significant untill you're a bit older and 'know' that this is what you want to do with your life. Because that's exactly what this means, if you want to help in any major way with the endeavor of reaching Mars with a manned flight you will be spending a major chunk of your life doing this.

Anyways I believe that the future's in advanced robotics technology. It's always cheaper to send up robots that require no life support systems than actual people. So until we know a lot more about Mars and know that colonizing it is a more necessary feat than trying to improve the planet we're already on, I don't think a person will ever be sent up there.

 

[Direwolf]

There are other people though, myself included, that see humanity's next big goal as being to get off this rock once and for all. :farmer:

 

[fizzlephox]

There are other people though, myself included, that see humanity's next big goal as being to get off this rock once and for all. :farmer:

With all the fuel and equipment that would be required to do that, whoever went would be leaving a large portion of humanity here. Then we'd have a scenario similar to that in 7th Legion.

 

[Direwolf]

Lord knows how we do it, but we do know theres going to have to be some first steps.
At this point I'd be happy if we started going to the moon more regularly, Mars is a good candidate though.