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The significance of space exploration
The significance of space exploration
The significance of space exploration
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Matthew Hoffman Professor Theis English 104 12:30-1:45 04/5/14 English 104: research paper The influence of space flight on the development of human society: why we should keep going to space As far back as we as a species can remember, space and the stars have always held specific place in our culture. In many religions the stars are held as the birthplace or homes of the gods, in science it is the panicle of the unknown. It the epitome of what we perceive as “out of reach”. But our understanding of the stars and space in general has changed dramatically over the course of the last few centuries. The more we’ve looked up, the more we recognize out place in this universe. But in the last hundred years, our understanding of space has grown exponentially. But no moment more than in 1969, when a small collection of brave men stepped outside of our known world. To the moon. The overall effects of this event was far more than bragging rights over the Russians, it was the singular turning point in what we believed we were truly capable of. In the years after this spectacular event many things happened, our understanding of space, and our perception on our home planet changed dramatically. However one of the things that happened was that we lost focus on further exploration, it was decided that space was no longer relevant to our daily lives and thus NASA’s funding was reduced. It was decide that other matters were more important. This however is not completely true, while some immediate matters are more important than furthering space exploration, it is not deserving of the sheer amount of budget cuts it has received. Not NASA specifically but space exploration general, has such a large sphere of influence that it’s difficult to percei... ... middle of paper ... ... made it across from one country to the other was often controlled by either the government or by media sources, and even then it took weeks for information to spread across the country to effectively become general knowledge. However now with our massive network of communication satellites, important information can spread like wildfire almost instantaneously. The barriers between countries become less solid, as people are able to communicate. The national community has in recent years become more and more a global community of citizens, all talking, all sharing. I even have a few friends in the UK as well as Switzerland, who I keep in regular contact with via communication applications such as Skype. None of these things would be possible without the capacity to launch satellites into space, or the ability to send strong reliable real time signals long distances.
On a cold winter’s morning on the 28th day of January in the year 1986, America was profoundly shaken and sent to its knees as the space shuttle Challenger gruesomely exploded just seconds after launching. The seven members of its crew, including one civilian teacher, were all lost. This was a game changer, we had never lost a single astronaut in flight. The United States by this time had unfortunately grown accustomed to successful space missions, and this reality check was all too sudden, too brutal for a complacent and oblivious nation (“Space”). The outbreak of sympathy that poured from its citizens had not been seen since President John F. Kennedy’s assassination. The disturbing scenes were shown repeatedly on news networks which undeniably made it troublesome to keep it from haunting the nation’s cognizance (“Space”). The current president had more than situation to address, he had the problematic undertaking of gracefully picking America back up by its boot straps.
America went to the moon in the 1960’s, during a time of war, a time that was so far behind in technology compared to now, but yet human beings went to the moon . Human beings are capable of many wonderful things and their potential has no limits, except for the limits that are placed by government and society. Neil deGrasse Tyson attempted to liberate NASA from the limits of low funding by giving a speech to the U.S Senate. Tyson used emotion and logical thinking to make the complexity of NASA as relatable to the audience as possible, and by doing so he wanted to convey to them how important NASA is in our society today and the future of the human kind.
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.
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.
Outer space has always intrigued the human mind. Ever since humans inhabited the Earth, they have always looked to the heavens. Ptolemy, who lived over two thousand years ago, dreamed of being with the stars. He said, “I know that I am mortal by nature, and ephemeral; but when I trace at my pleasure the windings to and fro of the heavenly bodies I no longer touch the earth with my feet: I stand in the presence of Zeus himself and take my fill of ambrosia” (Tyson). At that time, reaching the “final frontier” was not even remotely possible.
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. All problems involved with space exploration may not directly involve space itself. Many of those problems surface right here on Earth. Some of the easier issues have been resolved, such as escaping the forces of gravity to reach outer space. More of these 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, humans have already begun colonizing space, yet there are still new problems arising. Major problems such as financing, communication and culture conflicts are important in the journey to space, because they all have the potential to disrupt progress.
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?
As such, this essay will argue that space exploration is a necessity of our kind and that NASA should be progressively more financed. To begin with, space research has helped bring several developments to modern science, affecting the quality of our everyday lives. With issues like climate change, and population overgrowth, our species faces the risks of major extinction (4). Climate change has been a man-made problem in recent years that threatens our planet. It will take huge mitigations from current and future societies to even come close to reversing climate change.
Human fascination with the stars is as ancient as Babylonians and has been suggested to be older than Stonehenge. From “be fruitful and multiply” to “live long and prosper,” the instinct to protect and propagate the species has manifested in religion, art, and the imaginations of countless individuals. As human understanding of space treks out of the fantastical and into the scientific, the realities of traveling through and living in space are becoming clearer. Exploring, investigating, and living in space pose an expansive series of problems. However, the solutions to the problems faced by mankind's desire to reach beyond the horizon, through the night sky, and into the stars are solutions that will help in all areas of life on Earth.
“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” It was July 20 1969, the day that reshaped our nation and gave us unparalleled dreams for the future. The impact of the day goes far beyond our pride and nationalism; that day would change space exploration and technology forever. Just like a shooting star, that day would give us a glimpse of hope. A chance to see an event so breathtaking and defying, it would be man’s greatest accomplishment in the 20th century. As millions of people watched from their TV sets, a rush of euphoria came over the nation as Neil Armstrong stepped foot on the surface of the moon. It was the first time in the history of mankind that we would step on the surface of another celestial body. John F. Kennedy dared us to dream, he inspired the nation to reach for the moon, to set ourselves apart from the rest of the world. The Space Race was symbolic of many things. Our future as the technically dominate nation was secured in place; just as secure as Old Glory would be, when she was driven down into the soil of the moon. We not only reached the moon, we conquered it as a nation; united.
“Why should we go into space? What is the justification for spending all the effort and money on getting a few lumps of moon rocks? Aren’t there better causes here on Earth?”- Stephen Hawking. Space is the everlasting, ever growing place where we happen to reside. From the beginning of intelligent life here on Earth, we have wanted to learn. Whether it be simply constructing a fire, or solving the riddles that still puzzle us to this day. Many of the questions we still have are pertaining to space. Are we alone? How did we get here? Where are we going? Many answers can come from exploring space. Getting a “few lumps of moon rock” can answer so many questions we asked ourselves for millennia. Can we truly belong in a place we do not know about? Space exploration will better us now and in the future for several reasons.
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.
Since the discovery of powered flight, man has endeavored to test the limits of traveling higher, faster and longer. With the advent of rocket technology in the early 20th century, “higher” came to mean orbiting the Earth, eventually culminating in NASA’s Apollo 11 mission to the moon. “Faster” meant setting record after record of speeds in excess of the sound barrier, with the very same Apollo missions reaching velocities of almost 25,000 miles per hour. “Longer” can currently be summated by the International Space Station (ISS), which has been continually manned for over 13 years; the longest single period of time in space for an individual in that span is 215 days. In the past few decades, many space programs around the world have experienced dwindling national and international interest, mirroring a decrease in funding. However, one aspect of space travel has recently begun to pique the interests of medical professionals in particular- the effects of long duration space travel on the human body. With recent technological advances, long term voyages through the cosmos have leapt from the pages of science fiction and into reality, with several public and private entities- including NASA- planning manned missions to Mars as soon as the year 2030. While that may seem a long way off from the present, research into the effects of extended cosmic voyages on human beings is still in its infancy, especially with regards to the potential effects such a journey might have on the psychological states of astronauts.