posted 01-05-2004 09:28 AM
Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic in about a months time to discover a land he thought was India. He knew how to sail but was less informed about the world around him.
All this at a time when most of the world was under the impression that the Earth was flat.Today, we're capable of gathering valuable information of our unknown surroundings through the use of our machines. Whether these worlds are within ourselves, buried deep in the ocean, or on the surface of another planet hundreds of millions of miles away,we can gather priceless data to help us make better informed planning strategies.
Will we as humans ever live on Mars? Maybe...but by association through our robots, we already do.
Will we as humans ever visit Mars for a day or two? Without a doubt. I would almost say it's inevitable. If we have a means to do something, we can and will do it.
The news of America's successful rover landing on Mars is merely the beginning of how we as industrial designers can take an early advantage of the data that comes back from the rover. This data that is being transmitted across a vast interplanetary distance will inform of us of what materials would be most viable for mass production and the most suitable energy sources that can withstand the extreme environmental conditions present on Mars. How these things work together will eventually determine the face of what the future products will look like.
From zero mph on Earth to 12,000 mph and back to zero on another planet.
The things we design may never cease to amaze me.
http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/video/animation.html
http://www1.minn.net/~keithp/cctl.htm
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posted 01-05-2004 09:28 AM