That's a fighter pilot term for when a pilot is so determined to hit a target that he flies right into it. Not a healthy move.
It seems to me that a lot of the Mars advocates suffer from target fixation. They want to go to Mars so badly that nothing else matters, and anything else is seen as a threat to their dream.
I'm really much more interested in developing a space infrastructure that will allow us to accomplish a host of missions, such as returning to the moon, going to an NEO, and yes, even to Mars than I am in going to Mars by itself. If we announce that going to Mars is the goal, then all else falls by the wayside. In typical bureaucratic fashion, everything not related to going to Mars will be eliminated. More than likely, all we'll end up with is another heartbreaking dead end like Apollo. Once the goal is accomplished, what's to stop them from ending up just like we did after Apollo?
Sorry, but Mars in and of itself just isn't that important to me compared to being able to go where ever we want, Mars included.
Space/Science » in reply to A simple guestion
Target fixation
The whole thread (39 posts)
- "Problems with Mars probes? The fault is not in the stars, but in ourselves"
- Money alone isn't the solution
- FBC seems to have been tossed by the wayside.
- Some Things You Overlooked
- re: Some Things You Overlooked
- Key quote
- Money alone isn't the solution