Space Station Crucial for Going to Mars, NASA Chief Says NASA
administrator Charlie Bolden at NASA's Fiscal Year 2012 budget
briefing on Monday, Feb. 14, 2011 at NASA Headquarters in
Washington. CREDIT: NASA/Bill Ingalls WASHINGTON – NASA is on
track to send humans to Mars, the space agency's chief said
Wednesday (April 6). Addressing an auditorium full of
scientists, industry members, educators and former astronauts,
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said the agency committed to a
future manned mission to Mars, and that the International Space
Station is a vital test bed for getting there. "The
International Space Station is the centerpiece for our human
exploration and our spaceflight endeavors in the coming decade,"
Bolden said. "I like to say it's our anchor for the future of
human exploration. The station is our start to the journey
outward." Bolden delivered the keynote address at the
International Space Station and Mars Conference, a two-day event
held here at George Washington University. The conferen