Abstract Because our future depends on it, humanity must continue to invest in space exploration.. Technologies from the space program can be used to benefit the world and everyday life. Space flight encourages scientific aspirations and therefore more college educated people. The answers to the most deep-rooted questions of humanity lie in space. Who are we, why are we here? Are we alone? Why spend money on spaceflight when we have plenty of problems here on earth? The money that we spend on spaceflight will circle around to solve the pressing problems back at home. Why use humans instead of robots? Nothing can match the tenacity and adaptability of a human and the sense of accomplishment achieved by human exploration. These things are …show more content…
Remember when you dreamed? What did you dream about? I was an astronaut on a spacewalk. I was terrified yet thrilled. I was a kid in a tree house dreaming of something greater than himself that will change the world and humanity forever.
Thesis: Because our future depends on it, humanity must continue to invest in space exploration, particularly in exploring Mars.
Methods
To understand the importance of space flight, I thought that it would be vital to grasp the mindset of people who have firsthand experience with spaceflight. I began by reading Buzz Aldrin’s 2013 book, Mission to Mars: My Vision for Space Exploration published by National Geographic as well as the 2016 speech, “Mars Matters” given by Charles Bolden, the director of NASA, at the 32nd Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I then thought that it would be important to comprehend the historical significance of space flight. I found 2 articles by NASA’s chief historian, Steven J. Dick published by NASA: “The Importance of Exploration” and “Societal Impact of the Space Age”(2005). I needed to know in more detail the future of space flight that I was arguing for so I read the 2016 Huffington Post Article by David H. Bailey and Jonathan M. Borwein titled, “Space Exploration: The Future is Now.” I wanted to develop an idea of the intangible reasons that we explore space; the psychological reasons. These were explained in the 2007 Air
For many years humans have been exploring space to discover the unknown and fuel their curious and adventurous nature, but the decision of whether space exploration is worth the cost is strongly debated. Due to various arguments and evidence space exploration is strongly supported is proven to be worth the cost. Some of these reasons include space exploration being able to expand our knowledge and it being able to generate wealth. With these reasons the argument of whether space exploration is worth the risk can be easily decided.
Many critics believe that NASA and space exploration should not be the main focus of the government. However, NASA is not just about flying rockets and putting men into space. There is science and engineering that is being developed to push humanity forward in life. This space program is essential to answering philosophical questions, creating new technology for practical everyday use, the international collaboration with other countries, and the long-term survival of the human
The biggest affect increased space exploration would have could be its change on the education landscape. In 1998, NASA scientists Adriana Ocampo, Louis Friedman, and John Logsdon explored NASA’s effect on education in their article, “Why Space Science and Exploration Benefit Everyone.” Though their writing is nearly 20 years old, Ocampo, Friedman, and Logsdon explain why handcuffing NASA creates a “brain drain” in America –
Three main clusters that are developed under this idea of space exploration is the benefits that are gained, ethical code and what it means with regard to the future of the human race. In this paper I will talk about what major projects are being worked on and who will benefit from these. This will also include what laws of space are and ethical code. This will also identify the differing viewpoints on space exploration and whether the big picture is worth the small steps being taken as to advancements in space technology and sciences.
“Now is the time...for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on Earth.” This quote from John F. Kennedy expresses his belief on the future impact that the space race will have on Earth, and now we can see that his prediction was correct. Although, his prediction is not the only effect of the space race on the rest of humanity. The demand for space exploration has grown and evolved from the Space Race, which in turn has also sparked new advances in multiple fields of science and changed our society now and in the future.
Space has always been an unknown to the humanity, and therefore humanity has in insatiable desire to know as much as possible about the area beyond the Earth's atmosphere. Exploring space can lead to many new and exciting discoveries such as (see hubble, planets, kepler, moon rocks etc). When the United States first entered the realm of space in the [1960s], NASA had much funding. However, the motivation of this funding was not for science – it was political, as the government was determined to beat Russia in the Cold War Space Race. Today, as there is no political motivator as great as the Cold War, NASA is faced with a lack of funding and must make hard decisions. They must decide between the adventure and excitement of sending manned missions
Space exploration funding has been drastically reduced since the conclusion of the Space Race. Even though the Space Race is no longer relevant, it has positively affected human civilization, and we should continue to invest in space exploration to continue this trend. The first and primary reason we should continue to work with space is to aid industries on earth. Most notable is the use of satellites for purposes such as commercial communications, the GPS system, and meteorology. The second reason is because humans have an inherent hunger for knowledge, and space funding helps us develop technology for seeing what’s beyond earth. Space probes such as New Horizons and telescopes such as the James Webb Telescope have expanded our knowledge
Humans have dreamed of leaving the earth and traveling space for many years, and up to this day they have taken many steps in the right direction. Yet, with every new frontier they approach, new problems loom over the horizon. Some of these problems arise right here on Earth. Some of the issues have been resolved, such as escaping the forces of gravity to reach outer space. Most of the problems are far more arduous and the solutions need more time to be worked out properly. In “The Coming Schism” by James E. and Alcestis R. Oberg, they posit that humans can colonize space. Humans need to buckle up and build the technology which will help to solve problems that would arise to
I have gathered you all here to persuade you that space exploration is indeed worth the risk despite what a few people think. Those people think that exploration is a complete waste of time and money, but I would have to completely disagree with them because it has many benefits for the human race. Exploration is worth the risk, because it will give us information and resources that we didn’t have access to before we explored that place.
The author, Gregg Easterbrook (2011), has identified that the NASA resources are not being routed efficiently. "We’re throwing money at the wrong stuff". First, the "International Space Station" seems to be history 's most expensive mission and it is an advance space-telescope project. There are other projects that could be more inspirational such as sending people to Mars. Even though it is technically possible, it is surpassingly expensive at the moment. If there were an affordable way to reach orbit, it might open countless business opportunities in space. The reason Mars and the space business are out of reach is due the high cost of propelling weight into orbit. As an illustration, a mission to Mars could easily reach up to $ 1 trillion. The author argues that not because at the moment it’s not clear that a fundamentally new form of space propulsion can be invented, which represent an important challenge, does not mean NASA shouldn’t endeavor. Since the shuttle program began, excessive effort has been directed to maintain subsidies to contractors and congressional districts in comparison to the emphasis have been placed on seeking new ideas. According to the author, it is possible to restructure NASA’s budget, divert $1 or $2 billion a year from funding for manned space travel to propulsion research, and reducing Astronaut to the minimal level in order to free up the money needed. Alleging that any grand future in space will require a
The amount of accomplishments America has achieved in the area of space research is staggering. We have sent man to the moon, landed rovers, and discovered uncountable celestial bodies just by telescope! There are many benefits of space exploration, making it absolutely worth the cost. Some of these benefits are creating new beneficial jobs, and expanding our knowledge. While some argue there are drawbacks to space exploration, I think that the benefits outweigh these drawbacks. In addition, we desire to explore the unknown. As Georgia Douglass Johnson said the the poem “Your World”, in stanza 1 “Your world is as big as you make it”. This means that we can do whatever we want, as long as we’re determined.
“Space exploration is a force of nature unto itself that no other force in society can rival.” The famous astrophysicist and astronomer, Neil Degrasse Tyson, once said these powerful words. What Neil Degrasse Tyson meant is that space exploration, is unlike anything else as it compels people to explore and discover the unknown. It gathers interest in science and it’s many field, which is the foundation of society and the the future. Space exploration can solve many of the problems caused by humanity and further develop society. Ever since I was a child, I have always admired outer space with all of its stars and comets, and wanted to learn more about space. I have done more than sufficient research on this topic through various websites and articles on the Internet. Firstly, I will discuss the progression of technology from space exploration. Then, I will
Mankind has always been fascinated with exploring the unknown. From sailing to distant lands to someday setting foot on other planets, the spirit of exploration is the same. Bur now with the current economic situation and the high cost of sending people to space, NASA is being looked at as a way to free up some much needed funds. Although, there is many problems here on planet Earth that need addressing, the benefits of space exploration far out weight the disadvantages. Space exploration has given us more advanced technology, advances in the medical field, and a boost to the economy and these facts cannot be disputed.
The mysterious vastness beyond Earth has allured many scientists to explore and contribute much of their effort to the understanding of space. Although humans have been looking up at space for thousands of years, the physical exploration of this frontier has been only going on for the past few decades. Our current understanding of space is unparalleled to any time before in our history, but we still only know a small fraction of what there is to learn. Governments around the world spend about $40 billion dollars a year (Rockefeller, 2010) hoping to undertake tasks such as “human exploration of the solar system” to discovering the origins of life itself (Tatarewicz, 2009, p. 531). Recently, the private sector has also shown interest in space exploration in order to engage in profitable activities such as harnessing minerals from asteroids. Although it is easy to debate about the benefits and negatives of space exploration in its entirety, it is simpler focus on one aspect of it - the direct effect it has to those down on Earth. Rather than trying to decide whether or not going to other planets is worth it, this paper will argue about the value of the terrestrial benefits of space exploration. It is an important topic to think about as programs such as space exploration change lives and help acquire knowledge. Despite the large costs associated with space exploration, the multitude of discoveries in the past few decades has greatly improved daily life on Earth, the jobs the
Humans have always been interested in space and the wonder in which it may hold. In the past, humans worshiped the stars as if they were gods while also studying their position to give them guidance for their lives. Their interested in space has fathered the desire to know more. Today, space has been seen by many as the new frontier or the home beyond earth. Society have even taken a step forward through the creation of stories in books and movies based of the idea of humans living in space and the present of alliances. Yet there is still controversy on the need to continue space exploration when our own planet has so many detrimental problems. There is an ongoing debate on whether not the money used for space travel could be better beneficially use for other causes. It is true that space exploration costs billions of dollars a year alone according to NASA current budget, which is constantly increasing. However, what many refuses to understand is that without space exploration many of the innovations that we have today would not have existed. While there have been, many failed attempts involving space exploration that has caused a tremendous amount of money to go down the drain. However, many people fail to realize the benefits of space exploration and the possible future it may