Offworld Report: Weird Science - Feb '04

Plenty of articles on Mars missions and moon bases, a look back at the top scientific advances of 2003, a new supersolid state of matter is discovered, and why the Earth's magnetic field is fading fast.

Low spirits at NASA
The second Mars rover loses contact with Earth while the third one gets ready to land.

The Plane to Space
NASA takes another look at the space-plane concept.

Ciao Hubble
The end calls for the rather magnificent Hubble space telescope.

Small Choices
Molecular manufacturing - aka nanotechnology - is on its way.

Large Choices
A fuss is now being kicked off over just how cosmic distances are measured.

Europeans on Mars
Fine Red Planet pics from the Mars Express orbital probe.

SF Authors Love Mars
Why SF writers are loudly clapping Bush's plans for Mars.

Moon Fuel
Could bases on the Moon solve Earth's energy shortage?

Stir Crazy
Does human nature make Moon and Mars bases an impossiblity?

Killing Mars
Are Bush's plans a clever way to kill the space shuttle and other costly projects?

Extra Solid Stuff
A new super-solid state of matter is discovered by scientists.

Fortress Lunar
Why the Moon base could be a new arms race.

Moon Base: Schmoon Base
So NASA has plans? So what.

Rover Rolls
The first Rover gets rolling.

Nano Dangers
The evils of nanotechnology as seen through a new microscope.

Cheap Lunar Tickets
Why landing humans on the Moon and Mars could be done a lot cheaper.

The Bruce Plan
SF author Bruce Sterling on his networked strategy for defeating the next wave of super-epidemics.

Way Out There
Why sending astronauts way beyond the Earth will surely kill them.

Moon Walks
Another article on the possibility of human settlements on the Moon.

Bush-wacked
Bush unveils his Moon and Mars base plans.

Where's the Emergency Exit
Why NASA flights really needs an escape pod.

Baby Steps for Killer Bots
DARPA researchers need battle bots with legs.

One of our Spaceships is Missing
Nasa tries to get the Spirit probe going again.

Earth: Magnetism Needed
Why Earth's magnetic field is fading. Help!

Stardust Probe
The Stardust probe has passed 240km off the path of the comet Wild-2 in its mission to collect dust.

Comet Dust
More on NASA's Stardust probe.

Dead Beagle
Looks at the failure to pick up signal from the Beagle 2 mission.

2003's Top Ten
Roundup of the main scientific advances made in 2003.

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The Man Who Sold the Moon Scots SF author Ken Macleod reckons that watching George W. Bush's recent speech at NASA felt like science fiction coming true. But reservations ... well, he's got a few. (COMMENT) Human Stories of Mars The successful landing of the NASA rover Spirit in Gusev Crater on Mars has caught the world's imagination, but England's favourite hard SF author, Stephen Baxter, thinks that our attention will soon move on. (ARTICLES) Sixty-Two And A Half Miles High Scottish SF writer Rod MacDonald on the X Prize Foundation and the strange British dreams of a privately funded space race. (ARTICLES) Starfleet In Motion There's rather a lot of crew on a Federation starship. So apart from jogging around a lot during a red alert, what the heck do they all do? Uncle Geoff muses on the unlucky blue shirts who draw the Enterprise's toilet duty. (ARTICLES) Offworld Report: Science Fiction & Fantasy - Feb '04 Authors Brian Aldiss, Lucius Shepard, Robert Sheckley, Stephen Baxter and Gene Wolfe are interviewed, as is Kim Stanley Robinson, whose latest novel is somewhat ... wet. There's also new articles by Isaac Asimov, James Patrick Kelly and John Clute. (NEWS) Offworld Report: Weird Science - Feb '04 Plenty of articles on Mars missions and moon bases, a look back at the top scientific advances of 2003, a new supersolid state of matter is discovered, and why the Earth's magnetic field is fading fast. (NEWS) Offworld Report: Comics, Manga and Anime - Feb '04 An Alan Moore retrospective, another look at Tank Girl, and why poor old Captain America is now awakening in a parallel reality where the Nazis won WWII and control the USA ... hmmm, a bit of politics, anyone? (NEWS) Offworld Report: Roleplaying Games - Feb '04 Why presenting an RPG player with impossible choices helps makes for a great game, a look at the secret lives of Wood Elves, and a free PDF rules download for the 28mm figures wargame Cobalt-2 from Westwind. (NEWS) Paycheck Sadly, our Frank discovers this film is one Paycheck not worth necessarily cashing or depositing as Woo waters down his boisterously banal and generic thriller all too convincingly. (FILM REVIEWS) Peter Pan Visually vibrant and mystical in its charming presentation, Franks happily discovers Hogan's live action take on Peter Pan is an exquisite and sparkling celluloid fable that just pops into life. (FILM REVIEWS) The Return of the King Inherently grand, vibrant, inviting and whimsically overwhelming, Jackson packs an urgent sense of vitality into this third installment that will certainly amaze those who were attentive to the previous colorful two TLoTR epics. (FILM REVIEWS) Peter Pan In this new movie, Mark discovers a feast for the eyes that he can recommend with more conviction for parents than he can for the children who might see it. (FILM REVIEWS) Sea of Souls Interviews with actors Bill Paterson and Archie Panjabi, stars of the BBC's shortly-to-be-released new X Files-style television series, 'Sea of Souls'. (INTERVIEWS)

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