Please Don't Take Me to Your Leader

I never expected to live long enough to see flying saucers, but if this thing ever gets off the ground (no pun intended) then we all might:

NASA is inviting the public to watch the next test flight of its innovative flying saucer-shaped vehicle designed to land heavy payloads on Mars.

The vehicle, officially known as the Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD), measures 4.5 metres (15 feet) wide and weighs over three tons. Its innovative two-part braking system comprises a doughnut-shaped inflatable braking shield and a gigantic parachute.

The inflatable brake shield, called the supersonic inflatable aerodynamic decelerator (SIAD-R), is designed to unfold and inflate to increase a spacecraft’s size and atmospheric drag.

Only 30 years transpired between Columbus sailing the Atlantic, and Magellan circumnavigating the globe. It’s been more than 45 years since man first walked on the moon, and more than 50 years since the first man orbited the earth. It feels like we’ve lost a step.

Let’s get moving.