Chuck, I was discouraged reading this post until I realized that you were talking about interstellar space travel and not getting to Mars. I agree that the difference between discussions of solar system exploration and the eventual exploration of worlds beyond our solar system is the difference between science fiction and science fact. We are now developing real technologies that can get people to Mars. Technologies for interstellar space travel are still fantasies. "Man those cats can really swing They got music in their solar system They've rocked around the Milky Way They dance around the Borealice They're Space Truckin' everyday..." -Deep Purple -----Original Message----- From: utah-astronomy-bounces+kimharch=cut.net@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:utah-astronomy-bounces+kimharch=cut.net@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Chuck Hards Sent: Wednesday, January 02, 2008 1:18 PM To: Utah Astronomy Subject: Re: [Utah-astronomy] Happy New Year (belated) One more thing: This hope that a revolutionary technology is just around the corner is not something we can count on. Most of us on this list have been around long enough to know that the engineering hurdles that must be overcome for space travel are orders of magnitude beyond the engineering advancements we've seen leading up to and through the Industrial revolution, to the present day. Our cultural memory extends to times when we had nothing more than fire, wheels, and bronze, so of course a ramjet, computer and iPod seem futuristic. But there is still a LONG way to go before we can contemplate travels to exoplanets. You think risk is high going to Mars? "It's so very lonely, you're a thousand light-years from home..." -the Rolling Stones Internal Virus Database is out-of-date. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.15.31/1128 - Release Date: 11/13/2007 11:09 AM