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O P E N F O R U M |
P L
A N E T E M |
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 SECRET
MISSIONS
If scientific research is the only
goal behind the Mars missions, then why are countries going on separate, secretive
trips? Have you noticed that the US, EU, and Japan never launch joint missions?
(see race to Mars). Instead, they compete with each other. And the developing coun-tries
are never a part of Project Mars.
Why?
Planets like Mars are reported to have vast mineral and energy reserves. The one who
reaches first, gets to colonise and will gain the most. The promise of wealth in space has
attracted even private firms. This is the secret of space missions.
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 Space science is not about UFOs and aliens in fancy spacecrafts |
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Space science is aimed to com-mercially exploit water and
miner-als for meeting human needs. The expeditions are hence very costly. The Pathfinder
mission cost over US $266 and the Viking was worth US $3 billion! And every time there is
a mission, scientists have to justi-fy the money spent. So a story is spun and people
listen.
Like the story of the Face on Mars, that was created out of the
pictures taken by the Viking 1 Orbiter.
Face on Mars: pseudoscience.
Look closely at the face on Mars.
The Viking pictures show rock forma-tions, resembling a human face. Formed by shadows, it
produces illusion of eyes, nose and mouth.
It really looks like a face!
We humans are pattern seekers and find familiar things in unfamiliar places. Just as we
look at the clouds and imagine horses, ships and dragons floating up there.
But people take Mars visions far more
seriously than these. So there are many who firmly believe that Unidentified Fliyng
Objects (UFOs) exist, and that they are piloted by aliens from space. |
RACE
TO MARS |
| In the race to Mars, some failed and
some made it. From 1960, when two unnamed Soviet spacecraft couldn’t fly past Mars to
the 2004 landing of US Spirit, here’s the trail. |
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| Face Value: The Viking 1 photo
orbiter shows a rock formation resembling a human face, scaling 1 kilometre. |
Well, I am not about to say UFOs are
hogwash and deprive you of the thrills. They may exist, but we have no scientific evidence
to prove that. It is really a piece of pseudoscience. Or knowledge that is not based on or
supported by scientfic methods. Mars, has, through the years, generated a fascinatingly
colourful treasure trove of pseudoscience. Problem surfaces only when we try to include it
in the realm of science...
So, you may ask--is science no fun? Why not? You see an
object and ask why. Didn’t Issac Newton discover gravity after seeing an apple fall?
You study and apply.
Find out. Be a space scientist. Investigate. Tell us what
you feel about science and pseudoscience and write to us at panditji@cseindia.org It’s time we take
space science seriously. Beyond the face of it.
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