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by londons_explore
1597 days ago
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> modest research gains You also have to add in the PR benefits of each. If children aren't interested in space today, there won't be any government funding for space missions when those children become voters. In that light, dropping manned missions entirely will probably reduce interest in space quite a bit. Probably moreso than a rover on mars that figures out the composition of some rock. |
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Over the past 20yr hose rovers had gone from "testing the composition of probably dead rocks" to "actively looking for signs of current or former microbial life". Even the landings have gone from "shoot the thing at the planet and wait to hear back from it" to a live-streamed helicopter drop. I think they've excliped the ISS in terms of excitement for the junior-high and above crowd. Skyping someone in a blue jumpsuit who's floating around in a tube doesn't have the cool factor that "literally on another planet" gets you.