Guest: Frank Stratford. Topics: Human spaceflight to Mars. Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. We welcomed back Frank Stratford of Mars Drive (www.marsdrive.com) to update us on his latest thoughts regarding human Mars missions. You can read his latest Space Review article, "Which Way To Mars" from Oct. 22, 2012 at www.thespacereview.com/article/2174/1. In this article and during our first segment, Frank put forth two options for HSF to Mars. The first option he called the "miracle gift." The second option he refers to as "step by step." During this segment, Frank discussed both options in detail. He talked at length about what is realistic and plausible compared to being in the realm of fantasy regarding humans to Mars. A listener asked him if the less than plausible ventures were a distraction or even if they were destructive to the effort to put humans on Mars. Frank did not think so and citied YouTube hits for Mars advocacy & other groups as compared to a YouTube viral Korean song that is approaching 750 million hits (www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZkp7q19f0). This made the point very clearly that space and even humans to Mars does not command the interest or attention of the public in any way like our pop culture. Frank also stressed the need for collaboration with the Mars advocacy groups rather then each one going its own way. He mentioned several different organizations and one that he is supportive of, The Mars Initiative (http://marsinitiative.org). Callers asked Frank about the Mars Direct plan as the segment was ending. In our second segment, we talked about how to finance a humans to Mars mission. Frank used a $10 billion price tag saying there were only a few ideas that would come in less than that but given so many unknowns about a humans to Mars mission, it was almost impossible to budget such a mission. He talked about using a Falcon Heavy, fewer flights using the SLS, a flexible financing path, and more. He also mentioned the upcoming Mars Expo 2013 in the UK which you can read about on the Mars Drive website. As the program was ending, we talked about Mars Drive and the spin-off by one of the Mars Drive supporters, Mars Drive Lab. At the end, I challenged Frank for his action plan, that is how to bring to life what we had been talking about. You will find this a most interesting discussion. Frank left us with a final selling point: "A humans to Mars mission brings us the technology and jobs of tomorrow today." If you have comments/questions for Frank Stratford, please post them on The Space Show blog.
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