Landing on Mars.

It's funny; knowing we've landed on the moon and dropped rovers on Mars, I thought it wouldn't be that difficult to land humans.


After reading The Mars Dilemma from the October/November 2014 issue of Air & Space Smithsonian magazine, I was surprised to learn how little we know about landing humans there.  The two factors coming into play are: the thinness of the atmosphere and how massive a manned vehicle would need to be.

The article was written by co-authors Robert Manning ad William L. Simon who also wrote the book Mars Rover Curiosity, something I must read soon.

I found this article particularly insightful especially after reading The Martian by Andy Weir.  You can find my review of Weir's book is HERE.

The article in question can be found here :
http://www.airspacemag.com/space/mars-dilemma-180952797/?all

Air & Space Smithsonian magazine is something I'm subscribed too and enjoy the mix of aviation history and new space exploration news.  Their website is here:
http://www.airspacemag.com/