There was the 2010 speech
when he said, "By the mid-2030s, I believe we can send humans to orbit
Mars and return them safely to Earth. And a landing on Mars will follow.
And I expect to be around to see it."
There was that time in 2012 when he said the Curiosity rover was inspiring kids to tell "their moms and dads they want to be part of a Mars mission — maybe even the first person to walk on Mars." And there were those other times he told kids visiting the White House that they might go to Mars someday.
And, of course, the 2015 State of the Union address when he called for the U.S. to push out into the solar system "not just to visit, but to stay."
Today, the president said it again.
"We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America's story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time," the president wrote in an op-ed published by CNN.
"Getting to Mars will require continued cooperation between government and private innovators, and we're already well on our way," he wrote. "Within the next two years, private companies will for the first time send astronauts to the International Space Station."
There was that time in 2012 when he said the Curiosity rover was inspiring kids to tell "their moms and dads they want to be part of a Mars mission — maybe even the first person to walk on Mars." And there were those other times he told kids visiting the White House that they might go to Mars someday.
And, of course, the 2015 State of the Union address when he called for the U.S. to push out into the solar system "not just to visit, but to stay."
Today, the president said it again.
"We have set a clear goal vital to the next chapter of America's story in space: sending humans to Mars by the 2030s and returning them safely to Earth, with the ultimate ambition to one day remain there for an extended time," the president wrote in an op-ed published by CNN.
"Getting to Mars will require continued cooperation between government and private innovators, and we're already well on our way," he wrote. "Within the next two years, private companies will for the first time send astronauts to the International Space Station."