America dominated the space race when man first walked on the moon. Over the last decade, however, the United States has abandoned interplanetary travel and focused on Earth. Therefore, the funding was not available for NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. As a result, America has fallen behind in the exploration of the cosmos. Although some people have argued sending Americans into space is detrimental, closer examination shows the importance of reviving American space exploration. NASA was recently granted funding focused on returning to space. Recent innovations in the private sector have also allowed opulent entrepreneurs, like Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, to “...send [an astronaut] to Mars in 2018,” without the need for government funding (Suhay). Not …show more content…
For the first time in a decade, NASA has sufficient funds to pursue the space program. President Trump recently signed the NASA Transition Authorization Act, giving NASA “$19.5 billion” to begin exploring the cosmos again (Kaplan). NASA was given this money to reaffirm themselves as leader of the space race. By giving them this opportunity, the president expects NASA to regain the prestige they had in 1969, and surpass it. According to Vice President Pence, America has wasted money for too long by paying Russia “more than $76 million”, just to get a lift to the International Space Station (Pence). Over the past 12 years, America has paid Russia “...more than $3.36 billion” (Mosher). America will not fund Russian research above their own. In an article written for the Wall Street Journal, Pence wrote, “...America will lead in space again” (Pence). As the chairman of the National Space Council, he intends to revive America’s leadership of space exploration. John F. Kennedy once said, “I believe that this Nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man
NASA Funding The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was booming in the late 1960s because the U.S. invested over 4.5 percent of the Federal Budget (Bolden). Unfortunately, in the recent years, the Government has slashed funding for many of NASA’s projects in an attempt to cut back on the deficit and boost the economy. Despite the plummet in NASA's budget, the program has proved that it's prominence in the U.S., space programs like NASA continue to face difficulty in increasing its funds. Although, NASA leads evidently, the government doesn’t think NASA is worth more than 0.47 percent of the federal budget.
The United Space endured a long, competitive, tumultuous, and primed-to-explode relationship with the Soviet Union since its inception. The Space Race was perhaps the greatest spectacle of scientific engineering in the first 5.755 millennia. The U.S. had to reclaim its superior status after the Soviets launched Sputnick I into orbit on October, 4, 1957, and launched Yuri Gagarin into space on April 12, 1961 as the first human in space. Kennedy knew that the American people wanted a victory in the space race, and realized that, being so far away, the United Space could achieve it. Then, on September 12, 1962, President Kennedy gave the “Address at Rice University on the Nation's Space Effort”. This address is best known by this paragraph:
Bill Nye, the “Science Guy,” asserts, “NASA is an engine of innovation and inspiration as well as the world's premier space exploration agency, and we are well served by politicians working to keep it that way, instead of turning it into a mere jobs program, or worse, cutting its budget.” The United States of America’s government is currently in an economic debt encompassing billions of US dollars. Unfortunately, the government has attempted to balance finances by cutting the funding for most programs, including NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA, in over half a century, has brought the most economic, technological, and social benefits than any other program held here in the USA, as well as any other extraterrestrial program in the world. The last thing this nation needs is the cutting of NASA finances. NASA should be receiving more funding because the Earth will not last forever and humans will need a place to live, there’s a curiosity within humans about the vast universe they live in, there is evidence to suggest life on other planets, the USA’s superpower status will be improved, and the economical income NASA brings is more efficient than any other governmental or educational program.
The word race is defined at its core as a competition between runners, horses, vehicles, boats, etc. to see which is the fastest in covering a set course. Well, interestingly enough, a race of a different kind occurred between two countries from the years 1957 to 1969. The competition was unclear, and the opponents were on two entirely different continents, not something as simplistic as two horses. The United States and the United Soviet States of Russia both set out as arch rivals in the “Space Race,” a quest for dominance beyond the known Planet Earth. Ironically enough, just as communism was spreading to all parts of the world, the United States always sought to squash this form of government, despite somewhat dire consequences. Now, with
“In a fraught fiscal climate, NASA should focus on what it does best and on what offers the best return on investment. Solar system exploration meets both criteria: the U.S. has long led the interplanetary charge, and the resulting scientific benefits have come at a relative bargain. This year NASA 's planetary science program cost about $1.5 billion -- less than what NASA spent designing a congressionally mandated rocket, the Space Launch System, which appears more likely to satisfy aerospace contractors than to aid the cause of space exploration. Such directives from lawmakers all too often land in NASA 's lap without the funds to carry them out (To The
would have to end up working with the Russians. “With our relations shaky with Russia, I don’t think that’d be the best idea” (Martin). There’s no telling how well Russian and American astronauts would get along together, not to mention what would have to be paid to Russia just to go into space. In reality there’s no point in paying Russia for what could be done by NASA itself. Plus, there’s no telling how the U.S. will know that Russia won’t take all the credit for any new discoveries made by American astronauts and scientists.To keep things easy and hasslefree, the government should fund NASA more and to keep interest alive in its programs alive. Besides, the government still would be shelling out money anyways, perhaps not as much, but what would be the point when NASA can do it with government help?
Colonizing Mars, it seems like a distant achievement. Some say impossible, some say it will happen soon. Since Elon Musk has entered this field of exploration colonization of Mars has seemed even more plausible. Still, problems have surfaced to make this much more difficult than it has to be. This makes some believe this to be impossible or unlikely for the time. Despite what side you are on we can both agree that we want to advance in space exploration.
As a country we need to start investing more money and research into space technology. Programs currently exist for this effort, but the potential for research and progress is limited by a lack of funding; compared to other government funded programs, aerospace funding is pitiful. Continued research in space technology is a necessary step in our growth and development not just as a country but also as entire human race. If we are to achieve this goal, it is necessary to increase funding for space research and technology and consider the possibility of colonizing outer space. If we limit our existence to the planet Earth, and continue to drain the resources on this planet, we will destroy the only home we have.
When talking about the current space program, Neil Degrasse Tyson once said, “I got angry with America, because advancing is not just something you do incrementally. You need innovation as well, so that your advances are revolutionary, not merely evolutionary” (Tyson 3). America used to have the top space program in the world. Being first to the moon excited the country and gave everyone a sense of pride and fulfillment. Lately, though, we have been falling behind in space exploration. A successful space program is needed in America, and here’s why: we are losing our grip on the title as the world superpower and a new age of economics and politics is coming faster than we are prepared for. To be prepared for this new age we need the funds,
The National Space Policy has undergone changes throughout its new creation on August 31, 2006, under both the Obama administration and the Bush administration. The act originally was established for overarching national policies that governed the conduct of U.S space activities. President Dwight Eisenhower said “More than by any other imaginative concept, the mind of man is aroused by the thought of exploring the mysteries of outer space. Through such exploration, man hopes to broaden his horizons, add to his knowledge, improve his way of living on Earth.” With that statement, is where our time in space begins.
It is within man’s blood and nature to explore, and space is our next New World. Man’s first achievement in space travel was the launch of the Sputnik on October 4, 1957. For the next decades, space travel was roaring like a rocket, fueled by man’s desire to explore, man’s desire for knowledge, and man’s desire to beat his enemies. However, these impulses have died out as the well of government funding has been diverted to wars and debts, and the interest of the American people has been diverted to wars and debts. Amidst all these issues it is debated as to whether or not space travel is worth the money and the attention of scientists, particularly since humanity faces so many issues on earth currently. However, because of the past inventions, current services, and future benefits, space travel is indeed worth the money and attention of governments and people. It is within our hands to control man’s advancement, and space travel is the next venue to do so.
NASA’s research and innovation looked promising, but it came at a cost. Money, resources, and spacecraft accidents, most famously Apollo 13 all hindered NASA’s research. In the 21st century, the debate over funding for NASA is at its peak since the birth of the organization in 1958, especially when there are numerous problems throughout the world. Is the money spent on space exploration worth the advantages and advances it contributes to society? When considering this topic, one might ask themselves, why explore space?
Since the beginning of time, mankind has sought after learning about and exploring the universe. This yearning drove us to achieve such great things as the journey to the moon and the discovery of water on mars. Nowadays, several people argue as to whether or not space exploration is worth the effort. I believe that it is humanity’s instinctual nature to pursue a better understanding of ourselves, and our universe. Further understanding of our universe will lead to the discovery of new technologies and ways to secure humanity’s survivability. As such, this essay will argue that space exploration is a necessity to our kind and that NASA should be progressively more financed.
Most people think that the costly downside to funding space exploration is a reason to avoid spending money on sciences and instead spend it on problems here on earth, but such funding for space exploration actually promotes economical as well as scientific benefits. Space exploration is an important expenditure for the high cost because of the potential for numerous benefits such as the possibility to find useful resources to cultivate, space exploration and satellites produce many thousands of jobs in our economy, and it creates and discovers newer and better technologies through research and development.
An Astronomy topic that has always been intriguing is space travel. The ability to rocket into space, look down on Earth, and “…explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before” (IMDB) is an adventure that people dream of experiencing. On July 20, 1969, an estimated six million people watched Neil Armstrong become the first man to walk on the Moon (Nixon Library). Presently, people are paying Virgin Galactic $250,000 to reserve a seat on a spaceship that is expected to tour suborbital space in the near future (Virgin Galactic). Although space travel continues to be of interest, there is also some controversy. Controversies include: the allocation of government resources for space exploration, government verses commercial spacecrafts, and the need to colonize other planets for the survival of humanity. The intrigue and the controversy of space travel are the reasons for this Astronomy conversation.