Afternoon delight

As I enjoyed the sacrament of espresso this afternoon, I watched last night's CNN coverage of the Mars landing. I may not have stayed up late to watch it, but at least I set the DVR.

It was great. Being the perfect audience, I was nervous about the landing. Didn't matter that I knew things would work out; I just get caught up in the drama. It was so exciting. Everything not only went perfectly, but did so immediately. It was like boom, boom, boom. They got confirmation at every stage of the descent and within a very short time, had photos from the surface to prove it. It was stupendous.

The best part was seeing the faces of the NASA scientists as they learned the mission was a success. They seem to be a very huggable bunch. I always think this when I watch landings. (They also seem like hippies; just saying.) Seeing them cheer as the first results came in was inspiring. This is what real science looks like. I'm so glad I recorded it.

But afterward, I couldn't help but wonder. Is this incredible Mars landing the swan song of a formerly smart, technological society? Will this be like our moon landing, an event never to be repeated? The future of space exploration seems dim, given our financial reality and the dimwitted people we elect as legislators.

Sad but true: I can't imagine our current know-nothing society producing a similar or greater technological feat in the future. We aren't even educating our children anymore and we've placed extreme financial barriers -- like a protective moat -- around higher education. For most young people, it's no longer possible to go to college. This is not only insanity, it is national suicide. Where is the next generation of well-educated Americans supposed to come from?

But if the Mars landing was our swan song, at least it was lovely.

Wow. Just wow.

As I was trying to decide whether to stay up for the Mars landing, I fell asleep. When I awoke this morning, I ran to the computer to find out what happened.

We did it! That is so cool. Congratulations to everyone who contributed to the Curiosity mission. It's almost surreal. How could they have done something so complicated?!

This is one of those rare moments when it's okay to say, "USA! USA! USA!" Just wow!

Does today seem a bit shaky?

I swear, I'm a nervous wreck about tonight's Mars landing. Are you going to stay up for it? I don't think I could take it, so if I can fall asleep I'll probably get up in the middle of the night and scurry to the computer to learn what happened. Please let this work. Dog, are you listening? Help NASA. Good doggy!

Today I've tried to while away the hours by taking a long look at Xmas Carol, my horror novel. I do believe it's done. I've edited this thing so many times, I hardly know what it says anymore -- but the proof is in the pudding: no matter where in the book I read, I don't change a word.

Tomorrow, either elated or completely crushed by the landing news, I plan to read the whole book again. I need to see it as one expanse rather than piecemeal chapters. This is the final go-through, for sure. I should be able to get the book out this month.

Y'all have your electronic readers ready to go, right? Xmas Carol will be a digital-only publication. You're going to love this book (unless you're a religious twit). I promise.

Mars! Totally amazing.

Mars landing to occur this Monday morning

I've been too nervous to talk about it. But now the landing for the Mars rover/science lab is imminent. I swear, I'm a wreck. The landing sequence is downright alarming -- so many things could go wrong. In fact, let's say it out loud: success seems all but impossible. Still, I've got my fingers crossed. And according to the linked article, NASA is rather confident about the mission.

As for the timing, it's going to land early Monday morning. Am I going to stay up and watch it live? I don't think so. If the landing is a bust, I'd rather hear about it in retrospect. I'd be too depressed if I watched it live and it turned into a disaster. Besides, there won't be any images from Mars until much later -- days or weeks. It will take a while for NASA to roll out the rover's abilities.

But this is very cool and if it succeeds, it will answer a lot of questions. Surely, there was life on Mars at some point. I suspect it's still there, hiding underground, and I look forward to waking up on Monday morning to read the good news. Dog, if you're listening, help NASA out on Monday, okay? Thanks.

About that Mars landing

I wrote about this just the other day. We've got an amazing Mars landing coming up this August. Here's a video that explains the ridiculously complicated landing procedure for the rover (which is named Curiosity). If this works, it will be a towering testament to the dedication and intelligence of NASA's engineers. (Hat tip to Jerry Coyne. I found the video on his blog this morning.)