The Case for Mars; The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must

New York: Simon & Schuster [A Touchstone Book], 1996. First Touchstone Edition [stated]. First First Printing [Stated]Printing. Trade paperback. Good. xxi, [1], 344, [2] pages. Illustrations. Figures. Tables. Special Addendum. Glossary. Notes. References. Index. Cover has some wear and soiling. Some corners bent/bumped. Foreword by Arthur C. Clarke. Robert Zubrin (born April 9, 1952) is an American aerospace engineer and author, known for his advocacy of the manned exploration of Mars. He and his colleague, David Baker, were the driving force behind Mars Direct, a proposal intended to produce significant reductions in the cost and complexity of such a mission. The key idea was to use the Martian atmosphere to produce oxygen, water, and rocket propellant for the surface stay and return journey. A modified version of the plan was subsequently adopted by NASA as their "design reference mission". He questions the delay and cost-to-benefit ratio of first establishing a base or outpost on an asteroid or another Project Apollo-like return to the Moon, as neither would be able to provide all of its own oxygen, water, or energy; these resources are producible on Mars, and he expects people would be there thereafter. After the success of his book The Case for Mars, Zubrin established the Mars Society in 1998. Derived from a Kirkus review: Zubrin is an aeronautical engineer at Martin Marietta, Wagner the former editor of the National Space Society's magazine, Ad Astra, and together they make a forceful argument for the exploration and settlement of Mars. Zubrin has long advocated the ``Mars Direct'' plan, which could get off the ground for $30 billion, in contrast to the $450- billion Space Exploration Initiative (SEI) timidly proposed by President Bush. This is the frontier, Zubrin says, and risk is inherent when we venture forth. The most radical feature of the Mars Direct plan is the manufacture of propellants on the surface of Mars by an unmanned module before the arrival of astronauts. But Zubrin and Wagner's discussion makes this idea seem reasonable, and their plan would clearly save money. A mission that doesn't have to carry return fuel could use rockets that already exist. Mars Direct would also utilize conjunction trajectories, and it allows for much more time to be spent exploring the surface of Mars. The authors are propagandists, but they are persuasive and even demonstrate a shrewd grasp of political realities, going so far as to incorporate Newt Gingrich's thinking with regard to privatizing the Mars Direct mission.