This Girl Is Preparing To Become The First Human On Mars And She’s Only 17 (Update)
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People have been fascinated with “the final frontier” since the dawn of the day when space travel became possible, if not before. With movies like Star Trek and Star Wars being at the peak of popularity and the global reaction to Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket launch, the interest in colonization outside of our planet has never been higher. But while some of us only dream of going on a NASA mission, one girl is making it her reality.
Alyssa Carson is a 17-year-old girl from Baton Rouge, Louisiana who is on a training program to become an astronaut. Her dream is to be the first person on Mars, and she’s aiming for the 2033 Mars One mission. And the girl is surely working towards it. Being the first person to complete the NASA Passport Program by going to all 14 NASA Visitor Centers, Alyssa is also the youngest person to be accepted and graduate the Advanced Possum Academy, officially making her certified to go to space and an astronaut trainee. On top of astronaut training, she is also studying all of her school subjects in four languages (English, Chinese, French, and Spanish). “The biggest [challenge] is time and getting everything done at such a young age while also still attending high school. Continuing to train at a young age will also be further difficulties for me, but I have done great with it so far.” Alyssa told Bored Panda. As her friend mentions in the video below, Alyssa is well aware she can’t get married and start a family, however, Carson understands it and is determined to put it aside to achieve her Mars One dream.
Besides all studying and training, Carson is also a public speaker, aiming to draw interest to space exploration, as well as encourage everyone to seek their dreams. “Always follow your dream and don’t let anyone take it from you,” she says. When asked about personal inspirations, Carson said that “All astronauts, especially women astronauts as they have made the road for me to follow” inspire her.
Update (07/29/18): The article previously stated that Alyssa Carson is being trained in NASA space camp, which is incorrect. We have since corrected the information and apologize for the confusion.
More info: nasablueberry | Instagram | Facebook
Meet Alyssa Carson, a 17-year-old girl from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Despite her young age, she is training to become an astronaut
She aims to be part of the first human mission to Mars on 2033
The mission is part of the effort to establish a human colony on Mars, that could one day save our species
Alyssa first thought of going to Mars when she was 3, after seeing the TV show “The Backyardigans”
Ever since then Carson has been working hard to achieve her goals
In 2008, Bert Carson, her father, enrolled her in the United States Space Camp
She quickly became the first person to visit all three NASA Space Camps
Five years later, Alyssa was the first person to complete the NASA Passport Program by going to all 14 NASA Visitor Centers
Carson is also the youngest person to be accepted and graduate the Advanced Possum Academy
Which officially makes her certified to go to space and an astronaut trainee
With incredibly demanding astronaut training, Alyssa also studies all her school subjects in 4 languages
While not being able to apply to be an astronaut until she turns 18, Carson is the youngest applicant to International Space University
“The biggest [challenge] is time and getting everything done at such a young age” Alyssa told Bored Panda
Alyssa started “Blueberry Foundation”, named after her call sign Blueberry
That’s aiming to encourage kids to seek their dreams and give opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have
As well as draw interest to space travel and her mission
“Always follow your dream and don’t let anyone take it from you,” Alyssa says
As her friend mentions in the video below, Alyssa is well aware she can’t get married and start a family
However, Carson understands it and is determined to put it aside in order to achieve her dream
Watch the video below to see Alyssa’s journey and goals
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It would take hundreds of years to create a habitable environment on Mars. And beside that, we do not deserve to colonize Mars or any other planet, after destroying this one. We should first clean our backyard, then we can go and play somewhere else.
Every sci fi movie has the invading aliens as the horrible bad guys. We treat anything on our own planet that can't fight us as something we can dominate, so we'd be the asshole aliens. Way to go, humanity.
Agreed. Humans represent only 0.1% of mammals on this planet, but we endangered more than 60% of other species. By the year 2050, there will be more trash in oceans than marine life. It's scary how fast we are destroying everything we put our hands on.
o.o We are the alien invasion....
🙌🙌🙌🎤
Because movies are real.
Why not both? Science isn't a vacuum. If some tiny pocket of workers and thinkers are out there, trying to figure out how to terraform an entire planet, don't you think the results of their work would help us figure out how to fix ours?
Ok. This isn’t Star Trek. We can’t terraform anything, our changes to this planet have been driven by consumption and overuse of resources. The changes in our world are not the result of us knowingly making it better, but extracting resources.
Doodlebug, there are some documentaries on possible ways to terraform a planet, but it would take so much resources from this planet, time and effort, there would be little to nothing left for our planet. With this ongoing process of switching to renewable energy while trying to suppress consequences of global warming as much as possible (for instance, the amount of ice melting on Antarctica has tripled since 2010 and is increasing constantly), there is just not enough resources. And also, I think that if we find at least a tiny bit of hope of terraforming another planet, we would simply stop trying to save this one.
Harsh but true. But they've said it before, right? If we can't save the Earth, we'll need a backup place.
Mars is dead. We can do anything we want to it. Life comes first.
Is it? We have no definite proof that there is no life on Mars. Maybe there is. We are far better off on a moral level colonizing Venus.
What's so destroyed about this one? Seems pretty liveable, beautiful even, to me. Who are you to decide whether we can colonize?
r3dd3v1IL Most endangered species today are endangered thanks to humans, their natural habitats are lost due to both industrialization and urbanization. Also, take palm oil trend for instance: huge tracts of rainforest in Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa are being bulldozed or torched to make room for more plantations, releasing huge amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. Palm oil-based biofuels actually have much stronger impact compared to traditional fossil fuels. And this is still fresh. And the worst part? Palm oil is not even healthy and it is found almost in everything. So, in conclusion, we will go extinct too, but we'll sure as hell try our best to destroy everything on the way.
r3dd3v1IL You've got to be kidding me. Do a bit of research before starting a debate. I'm not a person in charge, I'm only stating my opinion, just like you. The only difference between you and me is that I've been reading and keeping up with the levels of pollution, deforestation and the constantly increasing number of endangered species on our planet for years now.
"The mission is part of the effort to establish a human colony on Mars, that could one day save our species" If our species needs saving, it will be because our planet doesn't support life anymore.
Btw, your garbage nonsense post about “believing” global warming is just smug apologist garbage thinking. You are embarrassing yourself at this point
Cripes. Get woke, ffs
@Nanni 17 Most species that ever existed are extinct by now. It's life. Perhaps one day humans will also cease to exist. I'm opposed to claiming that global warming or most species not existing anymore is somehow mankind's fault. Did the dinosaurs go to endangered and extinct due to humans? Was the last ice age caused by humans not burning enough wood? P.S. I'll give you excessive hunting is harmful and we are at fault for the extinction of some species of whales. But global warming? Please. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0aFPXr4n4
I like how everyone is commenting on this... using computer. Sitting on a chair certainly not made of dirt. In a house that's not a natural cave. I'm not saying it's bad, because it's what we need to strive (the basic aim of any species). But don't forget: the enemy here is not Humanity. It's ourselves on an individual level.
So true. Finally someone talks some sense.
I can't agree more!
Earth will get over it quite rapidly once we've finally ended ourselves, don't worry. We are just on tiny ridiculously short-lived annoyance, nothing more.
we should have already been on mars.
This tops a list of things I really don't want to do, thanks.
The sheer ineptitude of this article. More like the poor kid is "suicidal" and "delusional". Sometimes being in the front just means you're the first to die. Follow your dreams is one of the worst advice ever coming from a kid who does not support herself. It's a bit inspiring she goes to space camps but she will turn 18 soon, become an adult and have to financially support herself and live in the real world – then again, posing photos for social media is way easier!
Or it could mean your the first to do that thing. Anyway the first crew of Mars did die atleast they died for a good cause
Why the "She can't get married, she can't have kids." in the title on the front page? So old-fashioned ... That girl is living her dream and doing her utmost to advance technology. I think she's very brave and commendable for taking up this challenge.
Exactly, if this article was about a guy, the title would be something else completely
If it was a guy, it wouldn't have rated an article.
If this article was about a guy it would say the same. This is a colonization mission it’s a one way trip to mars. Anybody that goes would have to leave any family they have behind and never see them again and who would want that.
When I read it at first I though she was ill and that's why she can't have kids and decided to go to space.
They changed the topic was very sexist, like the rest of world.
Also, when she arrives at Mars to 'colonize' it, she will be expected to have children after all.
She will not be colonizing it, she will be getting it ready for other people to colonize. Her mission is to set it up, not populate it.
The article is a bit misleading. Nasa isn't specifically training Alyssa Carson to be an astronaut. What she is doing is great and she may well become an astronaut but the majority of the activities listed are open to any young person interested in space. The Nasa Passport Program is a visitor promotion where you get coupons, discounts and a commemorative stamp for each visitor center you visit. Possum Space Academy is a 4-5 day space camp aimed at kids. It's a fancy, expensive space camp but a space camp. The impressive part is that she got in as the Advanced Possum Academy is for college-aged students. The girl is brilliant and may be the first on Mars, but at the moment, she's not on Nasa's payroll and is just a young lady interested in becoming an astronaut.
Thanks for clarifying it.
I got a passport too. It stamped all the Cambodian & Indonesian restaurants I'd eaten at during a promotion. I cashed it in for a free appetizer.
Now, you can claim that the diplomatic corp is training to be an ambassador. :)
That's not stopping her from acting like a celebrity.
Love it! First sane comment I’ve read here.
My thought exactly. Next some kid's parents will want to cash in on the ephemeral internet fame fad by claiming their child is going to become a brain surgeon by visiting all hospitals that have a brain surgery ward. Plus, posing in front of ambulance maintenance workers in a med gown.
That's pretty awesome! Good luck! You work hard for it.
Ok, this whole thing about humans moving to mars to "save our species" is annoying. If you want to be on mars, groovy. But can't we just learn to, I dunno, coexist with the rest of Earth? Seriously, we don't want to be seen as the villains of a sci-f movie that go from planet to planet, destroying them and then moving to the next one.
colonising Mars could teach us a lot, for example how to better protect Earth. It's the same argument, why to spend on science, when so many children starve
Even if we take perfect care of Earth, way way way down the line the sun will burn out and life on Earth will be impossible. At that point, humanity will have to be able to live in another solar system. The Mars mission is the next step toward that.
Well then we’d be fucked on mars too if the sun burns out.
I don't think they will be too into Sci-fi...
Ok, that wasn't my point. I'm sayin that the idea of moving from planet to planet after we destroy each one is kind of similar to what movie villains do. I'm not saying that aliens watch our movies.
If all goes well, we'll never see her again. If it doesn't go well - we'll never see her again.
You got my feelings and idea in simple words
Aah, don't be so pessimistic. They'll have a delayed video link by the time this adventure will happen. Hope she is aware of that fact and the matter, that she could end up being nothing more than a "breeder" for the branch of humanity starting on the Red Planet.
Wish my parents could afford to send me to three space camps, if only we all had access to these types of resources
Yep. Her family apparently traveled all over the country so she could hit all the visitor centers. If you've got the bucks (or well off parents) you can accomplish most anything.
where's the "video below"?
She's obviously a very intelligent young woman as, no doubt, are the scientist working on the idea of sending people to Mars. If only we could re-direct their intelligence and time to help find ways to live in a way that is better for this planet.
The problem is our stupid politicians are not allocating enough funds for our scientists to work with.
What seems to be the problem ? The USA is among the world champions of environ-"ME"-ntal polluters by abandoning instead of cleaning up and getting one notch higher under DT ripping up the Paris Climate Agreement. "Making America great again" - on Mars.
FFS, lets save this world. This beautiful world and not have to go to another planet and destroy that one too. Just some small % of energy put into our behavior could save it all.
There's not really a whole lot there to destroy. No atmosphere, no oceans or rivers to pollute, no forests or jungles to defoliate, no wildlife to kill or make extinct, no natural resources to deplete. It's just a fool's errand. The biggest waste would be the funds and resources used to mount such an expedition and the lives lost on a one way trip.
What is the point of the comment on 'pushing back dating and a family'? Aside from the fact that it isn't true, mentioning it is blatant sexism - you would never write that about a male. Please remove it boredpanda and allow our women to contribute as humans without feeling it does or might diminish their worth in other spheres.
I could very easily see that being a requirement for men as well. A trip to Mars would be a very long and very dangerous mission. It would take around nine months to get to Mars. You would have to stay on Mars for, at least, 3 months to get a new launch window back to Earth with another 9 months of travel. Almost 2 years away from family. That would be very stressful to the families involve. Unlike being in the military, there is no leave time.
Is a return planned at this stage ?
Wishing this brave pioneer all the best. May she carry our dreams and hers forward. Ad Astra!
Wow, this is awesome! Having her dad already working in the industry helped for sure, but looks like she's pushed herself to do this all on her own!
Great I wish I could go with her on this :/
I admire this girl's passion and desire, but when the risks out way the rewards, why bother. We can explore uninhabitable Mars just fine with rovers and robots. With Mars' smaller size and less gravity, humans would be at the height of arrogance to think that they could ever manipulate or create an atmosphere where humans could exist there without the use of living enclosures. And if history here on Earth will tell us anything, the Biosphere experiments that were tried were abysmal failures. Without resources, there can be no manufacturing or agriculture to sustain life and every bit of food and supplies would have to be consistently shipped from Earth at astronomical expense. Dream big Allyson, but dream smart.
It's still 15years away that they plan to do this though. Will they still be happy sending robots when that time comes. Also with every thing she does I think she's the last person I'd say "dream smart" to.
We can't just destroy our planet and go find another one to live on. We need to learn to fix ours and actually fix it. That being said, it's a beautiful dream for the young girl and she has done so much to work her way there. I had dreams at that age and never did anything about them...and I let people get in my way of them! I hope she succeeds in hers one day.
amazing level of dedication. i can't wait for my niece and nephew to be studying her in school some day. way to go!
I'm so envious right now
Kind of unethical -- to get a kid/child hyped up about taking a long space mission that will never return.
I wonder when the time comes if she'll get cold feet and not go? It's one thing to train and get all the attention saying what you will do. It's another to actually leave everything behind when the time comes.
Humans have been leaving their homes and venturing into the unknown for thousands of years. Crossing deserts on foot, crossing oceans by ship... next, venturing through space. It's not so unimaginable.
such a determination! go Girl!
while she's making humanity proud, naked feminists protest about their missing rights
Who run the world... girls ! <3
I admire her determination. Becoming an astronaut isn't only a physical challenge with all the trainings, but also a mental one - she must be aware that at one point she and her crew will be all alone, far away with no option of rescue if anything goes wrong. You have to posess extreme courage and optimism. And also studies - it's hell of hard work to achieve this goal and I wish her all the best in her journey!
The kids are training hard for a life of solitude--these days, as you may be aware, the tweens interact primarily with their phones. You might say parents have helped train our next generation of astronauts by encouraging this behavior. On the bright side, venereal disease is on the decline. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I want to go with her and create the next generation of Martians.
I love space...everything about it for as long as I can remember. I'd love to visit and believe it needs to be explored for scientific and environmental purposes. However...the very idea of us going up there and mucking around, messing with the order of another planet...just NO!!! We've made a monumental mess of this planet...one that was made perfectly for us. Now they're talking about trying to make a planet that so obviously has nothing for us...it is a dust bowl, albeit a beautiful and fascinating one, our 'new home'. How does that even work? What is going to happen to the 90% of people who can't even afford to buy food when we're supposedly meant to make this transfer to Mars? How will it sustain the 10% of the elite who can actually afford to get there? It's effing ridiculous! What we NEED to be doing, is putting all that money into a greater effort to fix our planet...the one we've effed up. We need to save her so that she can continue to do what she's been doing for ever.
I was born about 45 years too early :P
I'm sorry. You CAN get married and you CAN have kids. That makes absolutely no sense. Male astronauts have families.
Male astronauts who are up in space for AT MOST a few months. For the team that ventures to Mars for a permanent mission to colonize it? They'll either need to have no family or leave them behind, because you won't see spouses and kids getting seats on that ship. She recognizes that it would be too difficult to leave a family behind, and so SHE has already made that choice to not have one.
I played enough DOOM to know going to Mars is a bad idea
Please change that irritating quote "She can't get married, she can't have kids" that pops up next to her photo on social media. It's unbelievable that this was the quote Bored Panda chose to glamorize. Way to take her down for accomplishing an amazing feat! GO ALYSSA! You go girl! cant-get-m...ccca53.png
Big Dreams
This is totally awesome!
These seems more like propaganda to misdirect people from NASA's bloated budget and myriad bureaucratic ineptness.
I just wanted to acknowledge your elegant usage of the adjective form of myriad. The words pore over my soul like a myriad of Trump tweets.
Pour
101 comments and not a single one about how much does she look like Katie Holmes? In 90% of the pics? Am I the only one noticing that she could be her daughter, or even her teenage self? Good luck to her and all, but this is what fascinated me the most.
If she was a guy, would marriage and kids even be mentioned? It's on the thumbnail and I'm a little disappointed in that. There;s so many other things and quotes that can on the thumbnail but nope. Had to mention she can't get married or have kids, because it's 2018 and we still think that's a woman's main priority in life.
It's almost as if people think most woman have a strong maternal instinct. People act like, on average, men and women have distinctly unique biological drives--as if child rearing is an integral role in most societies, and often central to the identity of women who raise children. I don't know where these preconceptions come from, but they seem to be driving the myth that men and women are different.
Men and women ARE different. Our biology is different and our brains are different. The thing is - just because I'm a woman, it does not mean I have to have all typical femine characteristics. But in general population, men and women ARE different. Fo9r exanple, they choose different jobs (most men prefer to work with machines, when most women prefer to work with people). But, "most" does not mean "all".
"She can't get married she can't have kids" ...where in this sentence is the sacrifice they try to portrait ?? Sounds like a solid plan for happiness and long life. Not getting married and not having kids is not all there is to life quite on the opposite there are so many other ways of feeling like a great contribution and doing good. And btw Humans have absolutely no business to take over another planet, care for our current Planet that is on a very dire state rather than trying to assimilate another. Absolute nonsense.
It makes me sick to my stomach to read comments about a 17 year old not being able to get married as if that is the goal she should have in life. Who cares about that when you have dreams to go to Mars!!! But, I do think it is a lot of time and money spent when we have homeless and sick people here starving and without health insurance. What a misguided govt. we have.
what's wrong with dream of life being wife and mother? It's not worse (or better) then going to Mars.
you go girl
I don't think we will be making it to Mars anytime soon.
#SoDoneWithThisPlanet Please dont spread the human race to other planets though! #OkThanksBye
Not sure why you would be against people going to other planets, particularly Mars. We've screwed up this planet but only because there are things to screw up. Earth has plants, animals, oceans, a breathable atmosphere, but Mars has none of that. You could pave the entire planet with three feet of asphalt and not affect anything. There are no forests to destroy, no oceans to pollute, no wildlife to endanger. It is barren. It's like telling someone to leave that rock alone because they can't properly care for a houseplant.
Humans would still find a way somehow to stuff it up
First sacrifice to Mars?
Coooool
Yea right like she actually speaks four languages to a fluency level where she can actually study in them lol
Four languages my ass
She was already so much involved in this, as a mere child, there are so many expectations now that she will not ever dare to change her mind and back out. I am not judging the mission itself, but doubting her ability to make an informed decision at such a young age. How do you differentiate between a passion and an obsession? This thought makes me uneasy, even though I am fascinated by the idea itself.
SHE. IS. MY. LIFE. GOALS.
It would be better to colonize the Antartica which is warmer than Mars and you can breath and life in water. Mars = Issues of Human waste and bacteria, constant radiation, can't step outside and breath, percolates in the soil, gravity is low, enlarged eyeball problems, weaker bone issues...etc
Fake news.
This girl doesn't know, what she wants.. She should study, do some research, travel, enjoy her carefree life..whatever. Why does she want to spend about how long..two years? in tight cold box so she can maybe land on some cold rock in the middle of nowhere, send some selfies and slowly die..? This one way trip is for somebody who has nothing to lose and who is curious about what is it like to freeze alive, burn alive, slowly fall in madness, be crushed to pieces, suffocate or starve to death.. Anyway she will have many followers and that is worth it..
Not to sound mean, and I'm sure she's an amazing young woman, but just because she's attended a bunch of space camps and gone to a bunch of visitor's centers - how is it that NASA is training her??? Is NASA aware? LOL! I mean, go girl! I hope you reach your dreams, but this "article" is... a little... off.
I don't like how she's encouraging young people to "follow [your] dream". This makes them think they don't need an education and sometimes you don't (like celebrities) need one to be successful but it's not that likely. It's good to have an education to fall back on if your "dream" doesn't work out
It would be crazy if this turned out like The Martian
"You go girl"...but never comes back.
Let me make it perfectly clear: NASA is not training this young woman to go anywhere. The programs she has been involved with are open to everyone and are not funded by NASA. She has paid her own way. Nothing that she has done guarantees her a slot with the federal astronaut corps or would probably even influence her selection. Let's not pretend a program exists when it does not. It does this fine young woman a disservice as well as the truth of such matters.
Anyone paying attention to the video knows she's not part of NASA. It was perfectly clear that she's building the experience she needs to get there - they explicitly talk about building up a resume and she says she knows she needs to make certain qualifications. But there are probably plenty of people at NASA already impressed and rooting for her.
YES!! bad ass ladies doing bad ass things!!!!
Absolutely the very definition of "the right stuff" . . . you go girl! I know, there are many who strongly suggest that we are a toxic lifeform, our track record with our own planet here is not so good, we should be "fixing" our own planet before venturing off to others, etc. I get that . . . However, to not be venturing out beyond our own planet, no matter how tentative such early steps might be, would be the greater folly.
What an idea to send to another planet so beautiful representative of our species!
hollywood
oops. hollywood is prepared to document her awesome adventure.
hollywood is prepared to document her journey.
Ain't nobody going to Mars, or the moon #wakeupfolks
That family has some $$$.
For those comments about how bad us humans are. One of the biggest issues is our lust to obtain money. If the young could aspire to go to Mars. Maybe they could also aspire to fix the stupid mess we have made here, and change our way of thinking about resources, money, corporations, and the value placed on life and the planet as a whole. I can't wait to see more exploration, but we have huge issues here that I just don't see how we can possibly fix. We shouldn't have to wait till someone saves up enough money to research a way to go to Mars. We should have to argue about how we make our power. We as a species should just be doing it. But we came up with money and that holds everything we could accomplish back. It sucks!
How feasible is it that she will actually get sent to Mars for colonization within her lifetime?
We need to colonize Uranus.
obama!
does anyone else think she looks like Vanellope from wreck it Ralph?
Just thought I should ease all you silly billy's little minds about the planet: Any day now we will simply deploy aircraft into the stratosphere to spray the sky with sulfuric acid, which will form sulfate aerosols and reflect about 1% of sunlight, solving global warming. Bada-bing. Bada-boom. It's not a big deal. https://www.technologyreview.com/s/511016/a-cheap-and-easy-plan-to-stop-global-warming/
Did anyone else notice that the title of the video it says she's fifteen but the headline in the article says she's seventeen?
Did someone forget to turn on their brain today? Obviously the story has links to older stories and videos about the same girl 2 yrs ago miss brainiac.
All these comments and not one person I saw actually grasps the point of colonizing other planets. It isn't because we want a fresh start or because our planet is screwed up. It is for the same reason you don't invest all your money in one stock. Diversification. If an extinction level event occurs, like a large asteroid strike, an extraterrestrial colony could literally be mankind's only hope of survival. THAT is why we need to colonize other planets. Oh, and because it is cool, but mostly the diversification thing.
We'd never be able to inhabit Mars. Supplying enough water alone for people and for indoor crops would be astonishing. And that's just one of a multitude of necessary requirements to inhabiting any location, especially one on a completely dead planet.
There is accessible water ice on Mars. It wouldn't need to be transported from Earth.
Matt Damon begs to differ.
Good for you, kid. get the hell off this backwards garbage planet and start the whole thing over someplace new.
somebody went on a downvoting spree.....so I went on an upvoting spree
You are an amazing young woman!
Interesting parents... Some don't even let their kids move abroad haha
reminds me of the movie Orbiter 9, the girl looks like the one in the movie too
reminds me of the movie Orbiter 9, this girl kind of looks like the girl in the movie too!!
Way to go girl. She is very inspirational. To know what one wants to do at such a young age AND really go through with it with such dedication.... just wow
i find it so awesome that she has her head on straight & knows what she wants at that age. rock on!
Comments are thoughts after reading an initial article followed by Bored Panda’s Post (sans video - sorry guys, I couldn’t stand watching). Alyssa could be the “right stuff”, she looks confident and media savvy. The “NASA Passport Programme”? Is that like Weet-Bix Cards - Collect them all and get a free Poster to stick them on kind of thing? So wot I got out of the “FIRST GIRL ON MARS INFO” was - Young Girl steadfastly sticks to her well off parents goals despite increased alienation from her peers. NASA Media Dept is too cheesy for words. If I were to be serious for a second, I’d say to Alyssa - “Girl! I know you believe in your heart that this is what you want to do.” & - “Wow! I guess you had a great time at (?). Space ey?” & - “I know @ 17 you feel like an Adult.” To NASA (or whoever) I say - “Alyssa is a child you have taken Adulthood from”.
This girl is effing amazing!!!
Cont'd.... Which is being a freaking majestic goddess...providing our every needs. Being beautiful...powerful...perfection! We NWES TO TAKE BETTER CARE OF HER!!!
She will test equipment, procedures and mechanisms and situations never before faced by a human being. Many pioneers in new lands die but they are fundamental to knowing where we can improve , but the ri code death is gigantic. The problem is not what we know that can go wrong the greater risk is in what we do not even know .......
If she is aware of the risks, she is the most courageous person in this solar system.
It will test equipment, procedures and mechanisms and situations never before faced by a human being ,,, Many pioneers in new lands die but they are fundamental to know where we can improve, but the ri code to die is gigantic. The problem is not what we know that can go wrong the greater risk is in what we do not know .......
They are hardly training her to be 'the first human on Mars'. In fact, NASA isn't training her at all, she's too young. She's been to Visitor Centers (what??) & in Space Camps that thousands of other kids have been to. Sorry honey but that does not qualify you to go to Mars & posing in that jumpsuit isn't going to make it happen. If you really want to be an astronaut, focus on your studies in English-3 other languages can come later when you have the information down pat-go into engineering or, better still, join the Air Force. A lot of astronauts have Armed Forces training & NASA likes that. Shows determination, skill & the ability to take orders. I'm not trying to be mean to this girl, just realistic.
Martians are going to think we all have such big ears. Just saying
She lived a good life.
A women as first Mars astronaut - this has the stench of Obama era political correctness.
d
Is she coming back from Mars or are they still planning for one-way missions with her practically becoming nothing more than a "breeder" to establish humanity on the Red Planet. Hope she is aware of all the facts of her involvement in this activity.
I do hope she gets to fulfill her dream, but we should be protecting our Planet Earth from destruction by recognizing that Climate Change is real and that we do not have the right to destroy our only habitable planet.
I don't see why she is learning her school subjects in 4 different languages? While cool and all, that's not required for astronaut training so why is it....? What's the relevance and why is she doing so?
This gives the term dying alone a whole new meaning.
This young woman is amazing!!
How space exploration benefits all of us: https://spinoff.nasa.gov/Spinoff2008/tech_benefits.html
And thats just up until 2008
So...Elon and company will be arriving and starting to colonize mars in 2024 or 2026, but then almost a decade later here comes Nasa. Lol That's hilarious.
Nothing like reading an article that talks about amazing accomplishments being hindered by old bronze age thinking about not being able to have children or get married. WTF Panda?
Tbh I don't understand how the family and kids line is sexist? It's just a fact to anyone doing something major in there life that majority of those people don't have time for. When a dream this big, takes up lots of study, lots of training, you don't have time for the things that would be considered normal like hanging with friends 24/7, dating and stuff. It's distracting and taking her focus away. This goes for anyone in a serious profession whether you be male or female. You just don't have time. It's not sexist. It's just the truth
I'm told physicians often have families, and in 2017 more women than men were enrolled in the incoming class of US medical schools. It ain't easy, but just this year a woman had a child in September and very well may win the Wimbledon tennis tournament less than a year later. What I'm trying to say is, she can have children on Mars. Have you seen Coneheads? True story.
Some of you are really debbie downers, we have made strides in how we treat this planet and we haven't had a world war in what well not quite 100 years but we're getting closer. Besides in about 50 years we should have our act together hmm 20% better I'd say.
Your insistence that the approach of World War III is imminent is not contributing to improved comment section morale, Mr. Morales. God Spede the Plough, good sir.
Why exactly wouldn't she be able to get married and to have a family?
Because anyone going to Mars the first few trips will not be taking their family with them. If she got married and had kids then went to Mars, most likely she will never return to Earth. Once someone lives on Mars for very long their bones and circulatory system changes...and they cant live on Earth any longer. Thats why no marriage and no kids. Later on, in the late 30's once the i infrastructure is in place, then families will start setting up shop on Mars. But once again...anyone born and raised on Mars will never walk on Earth. They'd die from the different gravity and atmospheric pressure. Havent u seen the movie The Space Between Us, about the boy born on mars and visits earth? He damn near dies and has to go back to Mars asap to remain living.
Ummm...no. She could have kids on Mars. Please see Coneheads, 1993. Game, Set, Match.
There is absolutely no reason why she couldn't get married or have kids. The tagline is straight up sexist and why we need more people like her promoting women in STEM. NASA would also never plan a one way mission to Mars. If they are to keep to their 2030 - 35 target (unlikely with the recent redirection towards the Lunar Deep Space Gateway) early human missions would likely remain in orbit with later missions lasting a few weeks before returning to Earth. These are the kind of missions we are at likely to see in our lifetime.
Impressive. You go girl!
Good for her but the chances of the mission being ready by 2033 are slim to none
Always nay-saying...everything I create! YOU create something!
humans are strange creature, we have such beautiful planet earth which we are destroying by pollutino and all and instead of fixing it, making an eye to destroy another planet.
Says who? Just because some of us are irresponsible doesn't mean all of us are.
unbelievable.
And will probably around 140 when we finally go to the Mars for real.
I wonder if her dad is pushing this or if she really wants to do it
I was wondering if he really loved her too. It's possible that we're both just projecting our own relationship with our parents, but part of me kind of wonders if the father is in fact guided by the vile seeds malice. If she does an AMA, I'll ask if you don't!
Sorry also Pinball can you explain what you meant with vile seeds of malice? Is that something you put through google translate??
No I'm definitely not projecting anything here, I also never mentioned wether he loved her or not. I don't know why but I get the impression that he is maybe linked to NASA in some way? There's something dead about her smile, there's a huge disconnect between her smile and the rest of her face, like she doesn't really wanna be there, wherever she is. Really the impression I get is she's little more than a well travelled teen with a specific itinerary of visiting notable NASA locations. Will be interesting to see if she actually amounts to anything in terms of becoming an astronaut. I'm not sure why she is studying all her school subjects in four languages. I thought they spoke English when astronauts from all over are working together? It's really silly when they say things like "at the age of three she decided she wanted to be an astronaut" like that in itself is some qualifier for genius? Guess what at the age of three so did I, along with wanting to be a neurosurgeon.
I'm jealous and proud.
Three years or so past, a literal NASA rocket scientist let a slip go by. He wrote an article about going to Mars and said that all they needed to do to make it work was to figure out hot to keep the electronics alive past the Van Allen Belts - the electromagnetic field around our planet. Electromagnetics cause electricity or damage it. If they don't know how to do that - what about the moon, the probes, the???
How about we fix the planet that is meant to have life on it instead of trying to destroy another one
Really!! Don't fall for the WooWoo!! There is no space girl!! Oh, momma!! Keeping the lie going. When will they STOP!! We ain't StoOpid! Good luck with that!!;?)
She should loose virginity with Elon. That would make sence. Their kids should grow up on Mars, driving with Tesla and having androids' army from Boston Dynamics of Larry Page, who should have as much kids as possible with female descendants of Elon&Alyssa.
I would rather choose to have a family than go to Mars. How can you be sure you'll survive there? No one's ever been there to tell you that it's going to be ok. Then you go there and realized you've wasted 15+ years of your life preparing for something that's not going to succeed. Then you tell yourself, "I should've stayed on Earth and have a real life." If we can live in Mars, God would have done it a long time ago.
Must be nice to have parents who can pay for all these camps. I liked space when I was young, so my folks told me to go outside at night and look up. That's all we can afford.
Impossible...and this just brainwash...nothing else..Mars??? For what and who????
She's not an astronaut trainee. She's not even qualified to be one. NASA has no plans to send her to Mars.
Am I the only one here thinking this poor girl will someday regret this? Her smile seems to be hollow to me. To be under so much pressure at such a young age... Even if she chose this life herself. I hope they put a shrink on the mission also, because somewhere down the road, she might need one.
Why are weapending billions trying to send someone of the planet when the planet clearly needs fixing...unless there is something we arent being told
Geez. Kids today. What a slacker. Such an underachiever. Sad.
the first thing that came to my mind on reading the title...……. The Martian The Martian The Martian The Martian The Martian
"On" 2033? You're obviously no an astronaut...
Riding coat-tails is easy. Why would anyone want to go to Mars anyhow?
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This is actually insane
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Googhrhfjiw
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And what about the Moon?
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We are going to Mars! Go fund us! Then it will never happen. 2033 is only 15yrs away.
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Or is it the real Noah's Ark?
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And since she'll be in space, no upper body strength required!
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She certainly seems eager and up for the task! I suspect tho, in a few years, when they tell her it's all been a scam(originally to proliferate the earth with ICBM's, topped with nuclear warheads, but now just to keep the trough full) and that she's not going anywhere, she'll be disappointed but will undoubtedly go along with it because...well, money. Nobody is going to or building a colony on Mars, folks. Ever.
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"Being the first person to complete the NASA Passport Program by going to all 14 NASA Visitor Centers" Well that's certainly better then wasting her time getting, you know, real Uni degrees in Engineering or Chemistry. Lol - she's a uber tourist so now she's "qualified" to be an astronaut? WTF?
Yeah. I thought that was odd too
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Tremendously impressed by her. Now... her smile.. SO creepy!
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f
What's f?
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Jesus fucking christ. They should never, ever let someone anywhere near that age decide on Mars. That's not a tattoo, it's never seeing your home planet again. Nobody who hasn't experienced life can even come close to understanding the ramifications of how it'll feel after 30 years, ya know? This is insanity. Remember all the dumb ideas you had as a kid?
There's 7 billion people on the planet - that means around 6.6 billion are spares - let the kid go where she wants.
She's only getting training. The mission isn't planned for another 15 years. That puts her in her 30s and gives her plenty of time to change her mind.
Nowhere does it say she’s been selected. She merely hopes to be selected. In 15 years, minimum, she will be 32.
I wanted to be a dolphin trainer as a kid, I still think it'd be awesome, but Mars is a bit much haha
I'd be surprised if anyone who downvoted me was middle aged or higher. People with some life experience understand the implications.
I'm probably old enough to be your uncle, kid.
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Is she aware that (N)ever (A) (S)traight (A)nswer is only using her for breeding purposes?
It would take hundreds of years to create a habitable environment on Mars. And beside that, we do not deserve to colonize Mars or any other planet, after destroying this one. We should first clean our backyard, then we can go and play somewhere else.
Every sci fi movie has the invading aliens as the horrible bad guys. We treat anything on our own planet that can't fight us as something we can dominate, so we'd be the asshole aliens. Way to go, humanity.
Agreed. Humans represent only 0.1% of mammals on this planet, but we endangered more than 60% of other species. By the year 2050, there will be more trash in oceans than marine life. It's scary how fast we are destroying everything we put our hands on.
o.o We are the alien invasion....
🙌🙌🙌🎤
Because movies are real.
Why not both? Science isn't a vacuum. If some tiny pocket of workers and thinkers are out there, trying to figure out how to terraform an entire planet, don't you think the results of their work would help us figure out how to fix ours?
Ok. This isn’t Star Trek. We can’t terraform anything, our changes to this planet have been driven by consumption and overuse of resources. The changes in our world are not the result of us knowingly making it better, but extracting resources.
Doodlebug, there are some documentaries on possible ways to terraform a planet, but it would take so much resources from this planet, time and effort, there would be little to nothing left for our planet. With this ongoing process of switching to renewable energy while trying to suppress consequences of global warming as much as possible (for instance, the amount of ice melting on Antarctica has tripled since 2010 and is increasing constantly), there is just not enough resources. And also, I think that if we find at least a tiny bit of hope of terraforming another planet, we would simply stop trying to save this one.
Harsh but true. But they've said it before, right? If we can't save the Earth, we'll need a backup place.
Mars is dead. We can do anything we want to it. Life comes first.
Is it? We have no definite proof that there is no life on Mars. Maybe there is. We are far better off on a moral level colonizing Venus.
What's so destroyed about this one? Seems pretty liveable, beautiful even, to me. Who are you to decide whether we can colonize?
r3dd3v1IL Most endangered species today are endangered thanks to humans, their natural habitats are lost due to both industrialization and urbanization. Also, take palm oil trend for instance: huge tracts of rainforest in Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa are being bulldozed or torched to make room for more plantations, releasing huge amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. Palm oil-based biofuels actually have much stronger impact compared to traditional fossil fuels. And this is still fresh. And the worst part? Palm oil is not even healthy and it is found almost in everything. So, in conclusion, we will go extinct too, but we'll sure as hell try our best to destroy everything on the way.
r3dd3v1IL You've got to be kidding me. Do a bit of research before starting a debate. I'm not a person in charge, I'm only stating my opinion, just like you. The only difference between you and me is that I've been reading and keeping up with the levels of pollution, deforestation and the constantly increasing number of endangered species on our planet for years now.
"The mission is part of the effort to establish a human colony on Mars, that could one day save our species" If our species needs saving, it will be because our planet doesn't support life anymore.
Btw, your garbage nonsense post about “believing” global warming is just smug apologist garbage thinking. You are embarrassing yourself at this point
Cripes. Get woke, ffs
@Nanni 17 Most species that ever existed are extinct by now. It's life. Perhaps one day humans will also cease to exist. I'm opposed to claiming that global warming or most species not existing anymore is somehow mankind's fault. Did the dinosaurs go to endangered and extinct due to humans? Was the last ice age caused by humans not burning enough wood? P.S. I'll give you excessive hunting is harmful and we are at fault for the extinction of some species of whales. But global warming? Please. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BB0aFPXr4n4
I like how everyone is commenting on this... using computer. Sitting on a chair certainly not made of dirt. In a house that's not a natural cave. I'm not saying it's bad, because it's what we need to strive (the basic aim of any species). But don't forget: the enemy here is not Humanity. It's ourselves on an individual level.
So true. Finally someone talks some sense.
I can't agree more!
Earth will get over it quite rapidly once we've finally ended ourselves, don't worry. We are just on tiny ridiculously short-lived annoyance, nothing more.
we should have already been on mars.
This tops a list of things I really don't want to do, thanks.
The sheer ineptitude of this article. More like the poor kid is "suicidal" and "delusional". Sometimes being in the front just means you're the first to die. Follow your dreams is one of the worst advice ever coming from a kid who does not support herself. It's a bit inspiring she goes to space camps but she will turn 18 soon, become an adult and have to financially support herself and live in the real world – then again, posing photos for social media is way easier!
Or it could mean your the first to do that thing. Anyway the first crew of Mars did die atleast they died for a good cause
Why the "She can't get married, she can't have kids." in the title on the front page? So old-fashioned ... That girl is living her dream and doing her utmost to advance technology. I think she's very brave and commendable for taking up this challenge.
Exactly, if this article was about a guy, the title would be something else completely
If it was a guy, it wouldn't have rated an article.
If this article was about a guy it would say the same. This is a colonization mission it’s a one way trip to mars. Anybody that goes would have to leave any family they have behind and never see them again and who would want that.
When I read it at first I though she was ill and that's why she can't have kids and decided to go to space.
They changed the topic was very sexist, like the rest of world.
Also, when she arrives at Mars to 'colonize' it, she will be expected to have children after all.
She will not be colonizing it, she will be getting it ready for other people to colonize. Her mission is to set it up, not populate it.
The article is a bit misleading. Nasa isn't specifically training Alyssa Carson to be an astronaut. What she is doing is great and she may well become an astronaut but the majority of the activities listed are open to any young person interested in space. The Nasa Passport Program is a visitor promotion where you get coupons, discounts and a commemorative stamp for each visitor center you visit. Possum Space Academy is a 4-5 day space camp aimed at kids. It's a fancy, expensive space camp but a space camp. The impressive part is that she got in as the Advanced Possum Academy is for college-aged students. The girl is brilliant and may be the first on Mars, but at the moment, she's not on Nasa's payroll and is just a young lady interested in becoming an astronaut.
Thanks for clarifying it.
I got a passport too. It stamped all the Cambodian & Indonesian restaurants I'd eaten at during a promotion. I cashed it in for a free appetizer.
Now, you can claim that the diplomatic corp is training to be an ambassador. :)
That's not stopping her from acting like a celebrity.
Love it! First sane comment I’ve read here.
My thought exactly. Next some kid's parents will want to cash in on the ephemeral internet fame fad by claiming their child is going to become a brain surgeon by visiting all hospitals that have a brain surgery ward. Plus, posing in front of ambulance maintenance workers in a med gown.
That's pretty awesome! Good luck! You work hard for it.
Ok, this whole thing about humans moving to mars to "save our species" is annoying. If you want to be on mars, groovy. But can't we just learn to, I dunno, coexist with the rest of Earth? Seriously, we don't want to be seen as the villains of a sci-f movie that go from planet to planet, destroying them and then moving to the next one.
colonising Mars could teach us a lot, for example how to better protect Earth. It's the same argument, why to spend on science, when so many children starve
Even if we take perfect care of Earth, way way way down the line the sun will burn out and life on Earth will be impossible. At that point, humanity will have to be able to live in another solar system. The Mars mission is the next step toward that.