>even if only mechanically..we are on another planet. not the moon...not an >asteroid...(dont get me wrong. those were awesome in their own >rights)...but a whole other WORLD

this is the nub of the matter - whether or not the surface looks 'boring', we are once again on another world (first time in more than 7 years .. what a wait!!). The horrible disappointments of MPL and beagle make this all the more sweet ..

btw the moon is also 'another world', just not another PLANET. It shouldn't be lumped together with an asteroid which is more of a giant orbiting mountain. The moon is big enough to have a horizon, geomorphology and gravity in which humans can function 'almost normally' - whereas on an asteroid you could probably reach escape velocity just by jumping hard enough. A small point to make .. but 35 years of lunar loving have made me a bit protective ..

It's true that the Spirit pics might be boring to those who don't realize that they are looking at a new world, and disappointing to those of us (like S.M.) who DO appreciate this but wanted more .. but as Larry J says, they must be very jaded not to appreciate the wonder of it .. these pics are fantastic to me - like out of some dream.

Once again the NASA planetary guys have shown their integrity by choosing a less sexy but safer landing site, and also by designing the mission around GEOLOGY instead of some hyped 'looking-for-life' scenario. I honestly don't mind whether Mars has/had life or not. It is an incredible place regardless, and a hundred years of human exploration probably still won't reveal all the geological wonders and mysteries.

Was it JBS Haldane (I forget) who said something like - "either we are alone in the universe, or we are not. Either way, I find the prospect absolutely staggering" ? I've held with that all my life, it allows me to enjoy the other worlds *in their own right* without being dampened by expectations or preconceived notions.

Thanks all for some fascinating posts
Daniel