Image Credit: CC BY-SA 2.0 Gage Skidmore
The veteran Apollo astronaut has called on the US government to hasten its efforts to colonize Mars.
Writing in the Washington Post, Aldrin, who famously walked on the Moon with fellow astronaut Neil Armstrong as part of the groundbreaking Apollo 11 mission in 1969, called on both Congress and President Trump to not only send humans to Mars, but to also build up a permanent presence there.
“Human nature – and potentially the ultimate survival of our species – demands humanity’s continued outward reach into the universe,” he wrote.
The emphasis, he argues, should not be on “a few hijinks or joy rides” but to work together with other countries to achieve a permanent settlement on Mars.
This can then facilitate what Aldrin refers to as the “great migration of humankind to Mars.”
“In a world of division and distraction, this mission is unifying – for all Americans and for all humankind,” he wrote.
With NASA currently targeting 2033 as the earliest possible date for a manned mission to Mars, perhaps Aldrin’s vision of a united interplanetary human race is not as far-fetched as it seems.
Source: Washington Post
