>>8573650Apollo was a convenient distraction from Vietnam, hope amid hopelessness.
Kennedy's proclamation cam after the US had exactly 15 minutes of manned spaceflight experience, Alan Shepard atop an ICBM. A bunch of engineers and scientists spit out their coffee.
The problem has, is, and always will be lethal levels of radiation outside the protective bubble of Earth's magnetic field, which traps a constant stream of solar and cosmic radiation in belts surrounding the planet.
> NASA’s focus now is on sending humans beyond low-Earth orbit to Mars… We are trying to develop the technologies to get there, it is actually a huge technological challenge. There are a couple of really big issues. For one thing – Radiation. Once you get outside the Earth’s magnetic field we are going to be exposing the astronauts to not just radiation coming from the Sun, but also to cosmic radiation. That's a higher dose than we think humans right now should really get.– Dr Ellen Stofan, Chief Scientist, NASA, and principal advisor
to NASA Administrator – BBC Newsnight interview, November 2014
https://www.aulis.com/orion_vanallens.htmArguments about the photography are deliberate distractions.