Re: India’s mars mission countdown…
I was talking physically … We will not go beyond this solar system … Not in a hundred years … The nearest star system that contain planets that may support life is about 3 light years away …
The way to get there will involve sending out packets of oxygen, food and water and supplies for repairs in probes every so often so as to create a stepping stone system … The manned craft will need to speedily travel distances in the hope of running in to “an oasis probe” … (I’ve coined it here) … They should be loaded with a beacon … Even then we will need to send out may be 500 or 600 of those probes before the manned mission goes out … To achieve that mammoth 2 light year journey in about 200 years assuming we will be able to reach speeds of up to 1/100th of light … It means the people on board either need to be in cryo-chambers or have children three of four generations to continue the journey. Life in outer space because of the lack of gravity will leave our bodies feeble so having babies in space might be difficult … This is reality of where we are … Scientifically speaking …
that is what I tell to those who wish to see the farthest reaches of the universe … Not what I said earlier … What I said earlier is what I say to those who think space exploration is about benefit to mankind … I said the only benefit … Foreseeable … That is … Is mining other planets and moons …
knowledge is useless if it has no moral or functional value … People trying to find out what happened … Is a nice to have …