The Daily Alaska empire., 1946-08-20

reservations for the first expeditions to the moon Within IS months from now according to the United Press the Army Air Forces expect to establish more CT less regular rocket communication between the earth and it's silvery satellite. Of course under stand it. the first rockets to the will not carry any living passengers, but only some robots which it is thought, will be better able than sentient beings to test the rigors of the lunar climate These robots take it. will send back reports about the weather the housing situation recreatonal facilities and other such matters as possible for thriving tourist trade. Anyway, Maj. P c. Calhoun says he expects to make personal inspection of the moon not later than 1876.
 That may seem long time to wait but it is pos sibe that the major has erred the side of military and that the pleasures of nterpentary travel may be available much sooner than that Before we get too impatient let hear MT R. L. Farnsworth of Chicago head of the United States Rocket Society, who says that it may be possible to reach the moon by rocket m 194S which is to say only two years from now. We hope he is right. The moon, it seems to us, would be excellent place for the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. It would afford
 the delegates interesting change and the convention rhetoric would have the effect of warming up the lunar atmosphere, which understand to be now somewhat chilly. Meanwhile over in Paris, Prof. Aexandre Aranoff of the Sorbonne is predicting the service to the planet Mars via atomically energzed space ships will have been established by 1960 and certainly hope he is right. For, by that time, if MT. Farnsworth knows what he is talking about, and we are sure he does, the moon probably will have become pretty thoroughly suburbanized offering not much greater attractions to adventurous tourists than, say White Plains Y, or Bryn Mawr Pa. Professor Aranoff says that a trip to Mars will require about Is days on a ship capable of average of 100000 knots through space. Now Mars is approximately 40 million miles away from us, that travel at that speed would bring the moon within easy committing distancet could be reached indeed in less time than
 it would take to get, say from Dupont Circle to St. on one of the proposed Washington subways.
 Nobody, except, of course, some poets, children and perhaps few superstitious peasants sup poses that there any inhabitants the moon. Thus the problem of aboriginies which, you remem- ber centuries ago after the discoveries of Columbus and others had opened the way to the set clement of New World would not arise up there and the real estate and mortgage people will find no complications about titles hunting privileges or that sort of thing when they begin laying out their subdivisions. Mars however, may be another matter. The opinion of astronomers generally is that Mars is also uninhabited but great many people think otherwise and they may be right.
 Assuming however, that they right, need not anticipate much in the way of trouble from the heat then Martans For when they hear that lot of fearfulooking two-legged goggeeyed monsters in fantastic costumes have descended their peaceful planet they will probably think that one of their radio announcers is attempting to perpetuate a very silly practical joke and will pay him further attention. By the time they discover the horrible, horrible truth it will be late for them to do anything much about it.