Why We Need To Build A Lunar Base

Our Moon! To go and build or not to go... (What say you?)

Most of the talk in today's environment (as regards space in general) is whether to go direct to Mars or to focus on the Moon first... It is a valid controversy and this particular video addresses the moon scenario... I my opinion, which doesn't count for much in the scheme of things, is that we need to do both... Explore Mars with robotic devices while creating a Moonbase... as a stepping off point so-to-speak, to the rest of our solar system. I accept that there are other opinions and mine may not be the most popular, so we should discuss all possibilities... We, the humans on Planet Earth have set our direction and we are moving forward...

This video was produced by "Insane Curiosity and here is what they have to say in their YouTube description:

About this Video by Insane Curiosity:

"There was a lot of talk about the future of space exploration, Mars and the great bases that we would certainly have built on the Moon by the end of the '70s. So we are back to talk about lunar bases, and to make plans for space exploration with human crews.

So that one of the big questions of the moment, that if dragged on for a long time will risk to bog down again the whole sector, is that of "better to bet on Mars or on the Moon"?

To go directly to Mars or to implant first stable bases on the Moon?

What does humanity gain by building a moon base?

Mars or the Moon, then?

It's a strategic, political and above all scientific choice. Many think or hope that the human journey to Mars can be accomplished by 2035. However, we are talking about a demonstration mission, a "hit and run", if not even a flyby without the satisfaction of touching the surface. A bit like Apollo 10 did with the Moon. But then a complete colony or even a very spartan base to be planted on the red planet would take decades to accomplish.

And perhaps the best way to learn how to do that is to practice on the Moon.
Today, the prospect of returning beyond low Earth orbit seems somehow more daunting, more dangerous, than it did when the Apollo program ended.

Insane Curiosity Notes:
"Some of our visual content is under an Attribution-ShareAlike license. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/​) in its different versions such as 1.0, 2.0, 3,0, and 4.0 – permitting commercial sharing with attribution given in each picture accordingly in the video."

Credits: Ron Miller
Credits: Mark A. Garlick / MarkGarlick.com
Credits: Nasa/Shutterstock/Storyblocks/Elon Musk/SpaceX/ESA/ESO
Credits: Flickr
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I hope you enjoy this video... Comments are always welcome.
Kerry
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