The Space Review: "Why a business case for Mars settlement is not required"

[DDE]

43 minutes ago, tater said:

The idea that somehow human space missions require fewer ground support staff overhead because astronauts are capable is comical.

Hence why no-one is proposing it.

9 hours ago, Dragon01 said:

Any launch takes hundreds of thousands of workers, both before and after

9 hours ago, Dragon01 said:

No, you need the exact same few thousand on standby, because a probe is a complex things that can break, and you don't want to lose it. In addition to a relatively small 24/7 team, you need to keep a team of experts around to solve any problems the prove might have in transit and after landing. For a decade or more. See the problem?
Astronauts actually need less babysitting than a probe does, though due to more complex nature of manned missions (which is partially because astronauts are so capable), a larger support team is a good idea. It's more to make sure they aren't wasting their time, though. Not to mention, they'd be home in a year and a half, or so.