For those who grew up in the 1960s, the Space Race energised people’s spirits with a feeling that humanity was coming of age – and the moon landing would be our stepping stone to the further reaches of the cosmos.
In reality, only 12 men walked on the Moon, the last of them in 1972, after which our interplanetary ambitions were brought down to Earth with a thump. The Space Shuttle programme provided our only manned trips into space, leaving Star Wars and Star Trek to provide vicarious flights of fancy and remind us of our potential as a species to travel to the stars.
Now, though, as Nasa's Cassini spacecraft swoops through the rings of Saturn and billionaire Elon Musk works on developing self-landing rocket boosters, the buzz around space travel is growing again.
The younger generation is thinking bigger, casting ever more envious glances at the Red Planet.
The Mars Generation – a new Netflix Originals documentary – offers a fascinating look inside mankind's future journey to Mars, as seen through the eyes of a group of teenagers, some of whom might be among the first to set foot on the planet.
There is also input from the leading experts pushing the boundaries of technology and innovation.
"We have an entire generation who want to go to Mars," says American astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson (Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey). "But all of that will fall on fallow soil if there isn't some big mission where they can apply this enthusiasm."
Produced in partnership with Time Inc, the documentary film follows a group of trainees between the ages of 15 and 18 at the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama – better known as Nasa’s Space Camp – as they push themselves to become the engineers, astrophysicists and astronauts of tomorrow.
From researching spaceship technology to running worst-case simulations and testing anti-gravity equipment, it is thrilling to watch these youngsters in action.
Along with getting an inside look into the modern space race – both in the public and private sectors – viewers will also see how the teenagers’ journey towards becoming the next generation of space experts mirrors the development of today’s leading lights, and prepares them for the most challenging expedition in human history.
Leading scientific luminaries – including Tyson, Musk, futurist and physicist Michio Kaku, Nasa astronaut Sunita Williams and educator Bill Nye (Bill Nye the Science Guy) – offer words of encouragement, along with insight into the historical, philosophical and technological implications of our becoming a multi-planetary species, plus tantalising proof that Mars is closer than you might think.
The documentary, which opened the Sundance Film Festival this year, was directed by Michael Barnett, an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker with a history of timely and uplifting documentaries, including: Superheroes (2011), an account of the real-life caped crusaders who dress up in costumes and fight crime; Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia (2013), a profile of the last lion of American liberalism; and Becoming Bulletproof (2014), an intimate story of filmmakers who live with disability.
"[The Mars Generation] delves into space exploration's history and current state, while looking beyond technology to what we will really need to get to the Red Planet: the power of youthful dreams," says Barnett. "Now is not the time to become nearsighted about the big idea of becoming interplanetary. This film is about the generation who is going to take us to Mars – if they are empowered to do so."
Musk, chief executive of the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, better known as SpaceX, as well as the chief executive and product architect of electric-car maker Tesla and many other high-tech corporate businesses, brings his vision and passion to the production as well.
“Some people think it’s fine just to stay on Earth forever,” he says. “But I think a future where we are a spacefaring civilisation and out there among the stars is infinitely more exciting and inspiring than one where we are not.”
But perhaps the soft lament of one Space Camp teenager best lays bare the soul of The Mars Generation, even as it fuels her determination.
“We don’t really go to space anymore,” she says. “People are losing touch with their human spirit.”
• The Mars Generation is available now on Netflix.
artslife@thenational.ae
