Chesley Bonestell, “The Exploration of Mars” (1953), oil on board, 143/8 x 28 inches, gift of William Estler, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Reproduced courtesy of Bonestell LLC.

Heading the Wrong Way

February 21, 2015

NASA recently launched its latest advanced rocket on a mission designed to lead ultimately into deeper space. But in Issues, a long-time observer of science and society has argued that the federal government and its space agency should be looking more actively in a different direction—toward the oceans, which offer more promising solutions to the world’s energy, food, environmental, and other problems.