My Thoughts On The NASA Orion Launch Test And Going To Mars Via Asteroid

I’m sure everybody has heard of today’s NASA launch test of Orion since it’s all over the news. I didn’t care too much about it until I wrote a few articles on it several days ago. After that, I turned into a little kid, wanting NASA to just hurry up and get this whole process a rollin’.

For those who don’t know, the test was one of the few that will take place before putting four astronauts in the Orion capsule. Once that happens, which could be around 2025, the capsule will take the crew members to an asteroid, which would get them to Mars by 2035ish. I think I got these years from The Verge.

How futuristic does this sound? Asteroid surfing to Mars? For real, it sounds like some Science Fiction novel.

We’ve heard our grandparents or great grandparents talk about that amazing moment watching the TV when the Armstrong landed on the moon. Most of us are going to get that same feeling in our lifetime. Surreal.

I keep thinking about the astronauts that will go on the Mars trip, and I can’t help but think about the things they’ll be giving up. It’s an amazing opportunity for them, but the trip to Mars is a long process . . . 15 to 20 years all together. They’re going to see things most of us could never dream of. At the same time, they’re giving up a huge part of their life.

Remember the old librarian in Shawshank Redemption? The old man that had the pet bird and was released from prison after decades? If you haven’t, all you need to know is that he left prison – the only thing he ever knew – and reentered society. Things were a lot different . . . technologically advanced. He was overwhelmed.

I wonder if these astronauts will feel like this when they return. They’re going to leave after Samsung releases their new Galaxy S30 or something like that, and when they come back to Earth, everybody’s gonna have built in phones or something crazy and futuristic. I would totally take that trip.

It’s pretty cool what NASA is trying to do, and I’m excited to see how things are going to turn out. The next decade is gonna be pretty huge when it comes to our understanding of deep space.

If you don’t know much about the whole Mars Exploration plan, definitely check it out.