Orion is NASA’s newest manned space project. What will it be like to live and work in this latest environment?

SCPO (Join to see) - What is the best est. for time of flight? Seems that without another fuel source, the weight of fuel alone would be prohibitive. I never underestimate what the US and scientists can do though. Manhattan project, Apollo 11, SR71, Space Shuttle and the list goes on. I think saving Earth is far more achievable, but not without alternative fuels and a paradigm shift from "living in excess", greed etc. People just crave too much and it's tapping out our resources (finite).

CWO3 (Join to see) - some very valid points, Bill. Yes, our avarice and greed and our endless lack of appreciation for this planet and its LIMITED resources will almost certainly be the reason our Earth dies in a billion years. Things done gotta change if we want things to last a decade or two longer!!! I completely agree.

Actually the reason why the earth won't be able to support life eventually is the sun. The intensity of the sun increases gradually over time. In a billion years it is possible that the earth will no longer be in the habitable zone. Mars isn't really a good choice for longterm habitation. It has no magnetic field. The reason why it lost most of its atmosphere was due to a loss of a magnetic field. This is most likely due to a cooling of its core. There is no active volcanism in Mars so, this would seem likely. Or species longterm survival will eventually require an exodus from the solar system.

In the long term future, it would be wise to look at the moons of the outer planets, you are going to need some sort of habitat that provides protection to the inhabitants.

An old girlfriend of mine, a teacher by trade, made it to the final 50 candidates from which Christa McAullife was picked. And Roger Launius, NASA’s Historian Emeritus, is an old family friend.