Sending astronauts on Mars would be stupid, says the astronaut

One of the first men to orbit the moon told BBC Radio 5 Live that it was "stupid" to plan human missions on Mars.

Bill Anders, pilot of the lunar module of Apollo 8, the first space flight manned to leave Earth's orbit, said the crewing on Mars was "almost ridiculous".

NASA is currently preparing new human missions on the Moon.

He wants to acquire the skills and develop the technology to enable a future human landing on Mars.

Anders, 85, said he was a "big supporter" of the "outstanding" unmanned programs, "mainly because they're so much cheaper." But he says that public support is simply not there to finance much more expensive human missions.

"What is the imperative? What's driving us to go on Mars?" he said, adding "I do not think the public is so interested".

Meanwhile, robotic probes are still exploring Mars. Last month, the InSight lander, which will sample the interior of the planet, landed at Elysium Planitia.

In a statement, NASA said it "was leading a sustainable return to the moon, which would help us prepare to send astronauts to Mars."

"It also includes commercial and international partners to expand human presence in space and bring new knowledge and opportunities."

In December 1968, Anders and his team-mates Frank Borman and Jim Lovell took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the top of a Saturn V, before making 10 orbits around the Moon.

The Apollo 8 crew spent 20 hours in orbit before returning to Earth.

They stranded in the Pacific on December 27, after landing at 4,500 meters from their target point. They were recovered by the USS Yorktown aircraft carrier.

At that time, it was the man furthest away from his home planet – and a vital stepping stone on the road leading to the historic Moon Landing. Apollo 11 barely seven months later.

But the former astronaut is scathing about the evolution of NASA since President John F. Kennedy promised to put a man on the moon in the late 1960s.

"NASA has not been able to go to the moon today, they are so ossified … NASA has become an employment program … many centers are mainly interested in staying busy and you do not see the support of the public except they receive their salary and the members of their congress are re-elected. "

Anders also criticizes the decision to focus on exploration in orbit near Earth after the completion of the Apollo program in the 1970s. "I think the Space Shuttle was a big mistake. practically nothing but an exciting launch, but she never kept her promises, "he said.

"The space station is only there because you have a shuttle, and vice versa, NASA has been really mismanaging the program since the last lunar landing."

This vision may seem surprising on the part of a proud patriot and servant of the US military, who still remembers his own mission in the space with a lot of affection. Anders also accepts this view, which does not fit very well with some members of the space community.

"I think NASA is lucky to have what it has – which is always hard to justify.I'm not very popular at NASA for saying that, but that's what it is. that I think, "he explained.

His former teammate, Frank Borman, who commanded the Apollo 8 mission and also spent two weeks in Earth orbit during the Gemini program, is slightly more enthusiastic.

"I'm not as critical of NASA as Bill," he told Live. "I strongly believe that we need a thorough exploration of our solar system and I think that man is one of them."

But questioned about the plans of Space X's founder, Elon Musk, and Amazon's boss, Jeff Bezos – who both talked about launching private missions on Mars, Borman is less than laudatory.

"I think there's a lot of hype on Mars that's nonsense – Musk and Bezos, they're talking about putting colonies on Mars, it's nonsense."

The Apollo legacy

Reflecting on his own historic mission on the Moon, Borman described Apollo 8 as a "big business" and acknowledged that he had won the space race.

Anders said that he thought that the enduring legacy of the mission would be "Earthrise", a photo taken by the crew showing the planet of origin of humanity suspended in the black from the space above the lunar horizon.

Sitting in front of the prime minister of BBC Radio 4, their teammate Jim Lovell also spoke of the opportune moment: "When I looked at the Earth itself … I started wondering why I was here, what was my goal here … it kind of got me into consciousness. " he said.

"And my perspective is that God has given mankind a scene on which to come in. The result of the play depends on us."

Frank Borman and Bill Anders were talking to BBC Radio 5 Live as part of a special documentary on the 50th anniversary of their historic lunar mission. Apollo 8: Christmas on the other side of the moon will be broadcast live on December 5, 2018 at 20:00 GMT.