August 6, 2012
Curiosity: NASA Mars rover lands successfully, proves government can still work
On November 26, 2011, NASA launched the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), a robotic probe, on an 8 month trip to the planet Mars. Early Monday, August 6, 2012 the Mars rover Curiosity successfully landed in the Gale Crater on the Martian surface. Major private contractors on the project include Boeing and Lockheed Martin, but make no mistake, NASA is still a government agency, and the successful launch and landing of Curiosity (which is the size of a car) on Mars is proof that government can still accomplish big things.
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There are prominent Republicans running for President that think opinions have as much weight as evidence and peer review. Rick Perry is the latest on the right to state that there are “gaps” in the theory of evolution. Another common attack from the right is on climate change. Do these people understand that science is nonpartisan? Sure, any individual is corruptible, but the field of science is the best system we have as humans for finding the truth. Opinion does not hold more weight than years and decades of evidence and peer review.