All eyes fixed on the Red Planet

Within the past several weeks, talk of extraterrestrial life and universes beyond our own has not been limited to conspiracy theorists and obsessed Star Trek fans. The Jan. 4 landing of the Mars rover Spirit and the Jan. 25 landing of its twin, Opportunity, have stirred interest in all things extraterrestrial among members of both the scientific and academic communities.

"I think for a lot of people, [Spirit's success] vividly demonstrates what a small but integral part of nature and the universe we are," said Associate Chemistry Professor Samuel Kounaves, who is part of a team that is developing a new Mars lander for launch in 2007 by NASA. "It helps connect us with something greater."

Spirit's landing and first two-plus weeks on Mars were completely successful: the rover transmitted numerous photographs of Mars' surface. On Jan. 21, however, Spirit stopped transmitting. Since then, NASA scientists have been working to repair it: on Saturday, they reestablished contact with the rover and are currently describing its condition as "stable." This includes Tufts graduate John Callas ('81), who works on the current mission as the science manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Astronomy Professor Bill Waller, who teaches "Space Science and Technology," agrees that this is a big step in space exploration. Waller's course examines the development of space telescopes, robotic space probes, and manned space ventures.

"It will be really interesting to see what more we can learn since the last robotic exploration of Mars [Viking in 1979]," Waller said.

According to Physics Professor Ken Lang, "there will be a lot of excitement" if either rover discovers liquid water near the surface of Mars, indicating that there is or ever was life there. Even if such a discovery is not made, though, Spirit's successful two-plus weeks have already had at least one far-reaching effect: boosting the public's perception of space exploration.

"Space exploration is really good for the country's morale, considering we have so much negative press overseas," freshman Kasey Collins said.

"The biggest implication of the success so far is that there was no loud outcry of wasting tax dollars as there would have been with another failure," physics Professor Emeritus George Mumford said.

These previous failures had stirred skepticism among Tufts students: "After the failure of NASA's '98 Polar Lander and Orbiter and the recent silence of the European Space Agency's Beagle Lander, there was some concern," among his students if the Rover would succeed, Kounaves explained.

In addition to disproving skeptics, Spirit's two successful weeks on Mars and Opportunity's successful landing have highlighted the advances made in various branches of technology. "I continue to be blown away by the marvelous technological achievements that have occurred in my lifetime," Waller said. "I think that the Mars rovers underscore what can be done with robotics -- We have come a long way in this regard."

Head of the Tufts Robotics Academy Chris Rogers agrees: Spirit's success "is inspirational," he said.

Spirit's success has also had political effects. "There wouldn't have been any presidential yell for people on Mars within decades if Spirit hadn't arrived," Mumford said.

In the Jan. 14 presidential "yell" of which Mumford speaks, President Bush called for Americans' return to the moon by 2015. Bush also proposed using the moon as a launchpad for a manned mission to Mars by around 2030.

Bush's plan, which has not yet received the endorsement or condemnation of the American Astronomical Society, has received mixed reviews from the public. According to an Associated Press poll, though 48 percent of Americans approve of the plan, 55 percent of them would prefer that the proposed NASA budget increase go towards education or healthcare instead.

Members of the Tufts community evince similar concerns: though she thinks "space exploration is a good idea," Collins feels that "we should be spending more on education and our own people than on space."

Others object to the plan on the opposite basis: while rich with big ideas and rhetoric, the plan, they say, provides too little funding to actually bring about the realization of those ideas.

"Many of my colleagues in the space science community see this as a political action in which Bush takes credit for a new push in space exploration, while providing little in support and letting future administrations pay for it," Kounaves said.

Junior Stefanie Schussel agreed, saying, "It's the perfect political statement -- by the time we know if it's a success or not, [Bush] will be long gone."

Though the plan's completion will require an estimated $12 billion, only one billion will come from a NASA budget increase. The rest of the funding must be obtained through a major restructuring of NASA's current programs, a possibility that has Tufts' experts concerned.

"Scientists are worried about the funding implications," Lang said. "$11 billion must be taken from existing NASA programs over the next five years, and this could impact current space science programs."

One definite effect of the restructuring, the decision to halt shuttle maintenance flights to the Hubble Space Telescope and allow it to deteriorate, is described by Waller as "astronomically regrettable."

"The Hubble Space telescope has provided more good science, more pictures to captivate public imagination, and raised more questions than virtually any other aspect of the space program," said Mumford, who, like Waller, is opposed to the Hubble's deterioration.

Waller added that, "there is no optical-ultraviolet space telescope planned that could replace Hubble in the next two decades."

The jettisoning of the Hubble notwithstanding, Lang is optimistic regarding the possibility of landing men on Mars. "It is certainly feasible to [use the Moon] as a launching base for Mars in the next several decades," he said. "There is a lot of interesting science one could do from the Moon."

Kounaves, however, is skeptical. "I certainly would like to see Mars explored, but I don't think going from the moon in the next several decades would be advantageous," he said, adding that "to build spacecraft on the moon would require a substantial industrial presence, mining, fabrication, and a large work force."

Mumford is also wary: "Proceed with caution to establish a base on the moon; especially on the side away from the earth, so that radiation emanating from our home planet won't interfere with contemplating the universe," he said.

"None of this will produce enough results within the next decade to have much bearing on any course I might have taught," Mumford added. "Nor is it likely to increase interest in astronomy at the college or university level."

Waller disagreed, and pointed out that "NASA's educational commitment is much greater than it was back in the 1970s."

Kounaves also hopes that Rover's success and the administration's focus on space exploration will stir enthusiasm among students. "In the past, such events have certainly helped attract students, not just into astronomy courses, but into science," he said. "I know that several of my colleagues, including myself, were enthralled by the moon missions. I know in my case they helped generate a passion for doing science."