Mars ambitions fire space centre

A mission to Mars is at least 10 years off

A move by President Bush to revive manned space missions and send astronauts to Mars has been welcomed in Wales.

Mr Bush, who is at the start of a US election year, is expected to officially unveil multi billion dollar plans this week for a permanent human settlement on the moon.

The revival in American space exploration coming almost a year after the Columbian shuttle disaster is being applauded by the US space agency Nasa.

In Wales the backers of a multi-million pound Space Life Centre are aiming to inspire Welsh pupils and students to get involved in future space exploration.

The Space Life Centre, first unveiled 14 months ago, is planned to go on the SA1 waterfront development in Swansea.

Significant private investment is being sought for the centre which will be both a leisure attraction and educational centre.

The kids who watched the moon landing are the people who put the Nasa explorer on Mars last week Lawrence Bailey

Partners including the Welsh Development Agency (WDA), Swansea council and the city's university met in December for two days to review progress.

"We are now waiting for the results of these two days where we looked at the overall viability of the scheme," said Michael King, the WDA's regional director.

"We should have something by the middle of February."

Mr King said obviously such a programme by the US would increase interest in space and space exploration.

"Swansea already has links with Nasa as the university does a bit of work for them," he said.

Swansea council leader Lawrence Bailey said the centre was aimed at inspiring youngsters to become the scientists and innovators involved in future exploration.

Lawrence Bailey says the centre will inspire youngsters

"The kids who watched the moon landing are the people who put the Nasa explorer on Mars last week," he said.

"The shame is that Britain spent a generation outside of that.

"The idea is people will come to the Space Life Centre and will leave inspired with what science and technology can achieve and what they can achieve."

The detail of what Mr Bush is proposing will not be revealed until Wednesday but its thought a permanent space station on the moon would take a decade to complete.

Manned trips to Mars, many millions of miles further away, would take much longer.