It's a common misconception that the moon is easier to get to. As far as rocket launches are concerned, getting to the moon is as difficult as getting to Mars. Worse, the moon has no atmospheric drag to assist with landing. The only way the moon is better is it's closer, which is almost a moot point because all the difficulty is tied up in getting off of Earth. And unless dramatic changes in our space flight capabilities take place, it's no easier to mount a timely rescue mission to the moon than it is to Mars - by the time we launch anything it'll be weeks or months after any accident takes place and well beyond the length of time stranded astronauts could survive.
Beyond that, the moon is generally much less suited for long term habitation than Mars is for several reasons. I won't get into details about that right here (unless you want me to) and Mars isn't exactly a cakewalk either, but the moon poses a more significant challenge in many ways.
That said, I welcome any kind of manned missions/outposts/colonies etc, whether the be on the moon or Mars or somewhere else entirely. I just believe that the payoff for starting on Mars could be much greater than doing the same on the moon.
The atmospheric drag on Mars is a bitch. Too little to help much, too much to ignore. Go too low and you burn up. Too high and you skip on the surface.
Beyond that, the moon is generally much less suited for long term habitation than Mars is for several reasons. I won't get into details about that right here (unless you want me to) and Mars isn't exactly a cakewalk either, but the moon poses a more significant challenge in many ways.
That said, I welcome any kind of manned missions/outposts/colonies etc, whether the be on the moon or Mars or somewhere else entirely. I just believe that the payoff for starting on Mars could be much greater than doing the same on the moon.