I sure hope this mission is successful. We have seen enough "agony of defeat" lately...It is man's nature to explore. "Why does a man climb a mountain? Because it is there."

I didn't take it as a critique. In spite of everything else this landing makes for exciting times and expands the fodder for my sci-fi novels. :) No worries.

Sorry, didn't mean it as any critique of your comment. To quote Gilbert and Sullivan:
"Merely corroborative detail, intended to give artistic verisimilitude "
;^)

I never said it would be easy or immediate but it all starts with a safe landing.

Asteroid landing is a walk in the park by comparison, imo. Mining, otoh, will take some robotic tech upgrades still in r & d. The industry is just starting to test unmanned trucks driving within well defined mine sites on earth. Another example of how different mining will be: Power needed to do mining under earth gravity is substantial and is almost exclusively diesel powered internal combustion engines. On asteroids a completely different power source must be used. It will be a magnificent undertaking!

This is going to be a huge step for mankind. The first step toward asteroid/comet mining and a solid human presence in space.