Elon Musk-- Manifest Space Destiny-- It Is Our Moral Duty To Colonize Mars [Picture, Video]

This wouldn’t be the first time scientific progress would be corroded because of religious belief. Although the 17th century Enlightenment is heralded as a golden age of scientific discovery, during Europe’s dark ages between the 9th Century and the middle of the 13th Century, Islamic scholars were making great strides in mathematics, medicine and physics.(2)

Unfortunately, scientific progress in the Islamic world came to a grinding halt. Most historians reject the facile hypothesis that religion is the foremost reason Islam is no longer at the forefront of scientific discovery. Nevertheless, many agree religious extremism did contribute to the end of science’s golden age in the Muslim world, in part because many people saw science as corrosive of religious belief.

Unlike scientific regresses of the past, however, humanity wasn’t flirting with nuclear weapons..

“Let’s say nuclear weapons are used. I mean, there could be a very powerful social movement that’s anti-technology. There’s also growth in religious extremism. Like, I mean, does ISIS grow?” he said.(1)

Mars would be a safe haven for human civilization, according to Musk. All the planet needs is a little warming. Ironically, Musk’s remarks about the dangers of nuclear weaponry brought up previous remarks he made during a television appearance about nuking Mars.

Musk claims his previous remarks had been taken out of context. In actuality, Musk says what he really wanted to do was create aerial explosions on the planet’s surface in an effort to warm its poles.(1)

During the interview, Musk also revealed that SpaceX is currently designing a new space suit, which feels and looks better than previous designs. The space agency is also in the process of developing a version of its Dragon cargo spacecraft, which will be capable of carrying crew in the future.     source