re: Mars....
Mars is a bright orange star in the sky, tonight.
But without an instrument, I can't see details. An eyepiece is like glasses, an artificial extension of my left eye (the one I use most of the time), an eyepiece is a tool.
It is also expected amateur telescopes will not only have a GOTO system to quickly aim at a specific star, but also a built in CCD camera.
I agree with Sawyer.
I certainly would love to see humans permanently in space in a sustainable way, and also on the Moon, but Mars is too far.