59_214434_SP 16 [7.18.1963]

Text

This text came with the file. It may have mistakes. When the text and the image disagree, the image is right.

I ISF ONLY
- 3 -
probably existed on our other planets. Some of the discussions about
life on Mars at the turn of the century seem to indicate a strong urge
to want to find intelligent life elsewhere. Today, the situation is
completely reversed, and although intelligent life is considered quite
probable among the stars, it is held to be quite unlikely within the
solar system. We seem more eager to listen with Ozma than to look
closely at Canali.
One school of flying saucer advocates claims that the Martians have
been mining our moon for natural resources for some time. At first
thought, one would think they would rather mine earth. It is interesting
to speculate, however, upon space flight from the point of view of a
Martian. The escape speed of Mars is only 161 500 fps, and, of course,
braking speed on our moon is less than 10, 000 fps. Thus, Martians look-
ing at earth would tend to view it the same way Terrestrials look at Jupiter.
Our moon might not be less work to get to, since atmospheric braking to
earth is possible, but would be very much easier to return from, while
the energy requirements to go to and return from the surface of the earth
might well be so high as to discourage interest, at least initially,. Inter-
estingly enough, even a normal high energy chemical rocket could make
a trip from Mars to our moon at favorable times while carrying almost
10% of its gross weight in payload. Space flight starting from Mars,
then, is a much easier prospect than starting from Terra. If a suitable
refueling base had been painfully established on our moon, the operation
could be done quite commendably with merely chemical energy. (The afore-
mentioned high energy chemical rocket could carry at favorable times
almost 50% payload back to Mars.) Of course, many flying saucer advo-
cates claim that the discovery of both Martian moons within a week in the
latter part of the Nineteenth Century indicates that they are large artificial
space stations, otherwise they would have been found earlier. If we were
to discover Martians on the moon, it would result in surprisingly little re-
adjustment of our scientific thinking.
The biggest question would be why
they were there rather than among the Asteroids.
In fact, if we were not as scientifically sure of ourselves as we are, three
recent events would be hailed as broad hints of intelligent life on the moon.
( 1) The discovery of hot gasses eminating from the crater Alphonsus when
the moon was supposedly dead. This would be considered evidence of civili-
zation and, since Alphonsus is close to the visible edge, interpreted to mean
that the other side of the moon was teaming with population which had begun
Off f t.;1 '' E U~O~I LY
_,,,