"to make sure we know how to land without adding a crater," Musk said.
Not a reference to the Schiaparelli lander in any way, honest.
Musk outlines plans for Mars
The first humans sent by SpaceX to Mars won't be astronauts, but engineers, boss Elon Musk has said. The rocket biz plans to send over unmanned Dragon capsules at first "to make sure we know how to land without adding a crater," Musk said during a Reddit chat. The landers would also carry equipment to see how easily oxygen and …
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Monday 24th October 2016 20:49 GMT Mage
Heart of Gold spacecraft's 42
I think he reads too much comedy spoof SF to be making engineering decisions.
I'd advise anyone flying on his ships to take a white paint marker and Duck tape to disable selections on all the drinks machines.
Besides if his spacecraft are as hyped as his car's "autopilot" you want an alert human pilot too.
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Monday 24th October 2016 23:37 GMT Neoc
Hmmm... Isn't anyone who goes beyond the atmosphere an "astronaut", regardless of their actual occupation? ( https://www.google.com/search?q=define%3Aastronaut&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8 )
As for "Mars Base Alpha", well played sir. Keep those pop-culture references coming. I only hope the lander will be called "Eagle-1". Now if you'll excuse me, I have an old British TV sci-fi series to re-watch.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
