Ed, you keep talking like the public is first even aware of impact hazards as a reality and that there is a wave of some sort formed to move this concern forward.

The House Asteroid Bill is going nowhere there are no polls (evidence) showing public awareness or interest or concern. There is no out cry in the USA.

BTW, Zubrin has no control over the plans NASA makes. So it isn't Zubrin and Griffin anything.

That a plan exists (Mars Direct) that uses reactors doesn't mean there isn't also a plan to use other methods to acquire power at Mars some 25 to 40 years from now!

There are plenty of article against the NASA Plan this isn't one of them!

Some quotes from the Palm Beach Post Article NASA leader ready for liftoff
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Besides his doctorate in aerospace engineering, Dr. Griffin, 55, has five master's degrees — in electrical engineering, business administration, aerospace science, applied physics and civil engineering.

It also turns out that he's accomplished in candor, something that not many in Washington were prepared for.

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further down

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Can a nation with massive hurricane damage, surging budget deficits and a war to fight in Iraq really afford the high cost of manned space flights when robot missions might advance research about as much? Is a return to the moon something that will capture the imagination of Americans? We've been there six times, so who's excited about No. 7?

The space program always has relied on the imagination to sell itself. It was an electric moment when JFK announced in 1961 that the nation was committing itself to landing on the moon. Mr. Bush's announcement was anticlimactic as a B-movie sequel by comparison. Exploration has to be about more than return engagements, and the journey to Mars seems like pie in the cosmos.

Still, Dr. Griffin is trying hard to incite a liftoff of the national spirit. He describes the proposed moon shot as "Apollo on steroids." He says the new spacecraft will have escape rockets and be 10 times safer than the shuttle. The capsule could carry six astronauts, or none and fly robotically. He says NASA can live within its $16 billion annual budget. "All our goals,'' he said, "will be funding-driven."

A more muscular Apollo, funding-driven goals and a déjà vu destination from 1969? Dr. Griffin is going to need a master's degree in marketing, too.

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