NASA is again working on preparing for manned exploration missions back to the Moon and to Mars.
They are spending billions on creating rockets, space vehicles, space suits, and more.
But why? Why go to the Moon? Why go to Mars? Here are their arguments:
- Search for life or signs of life.
- Build habitats on other planets
Here are some other reasons that I’m just guessing about…
- To say we did it.
- To keep NASA in business (lots of government jobs there)
It all sounds kind of pointless to me. I mean, we’re here on earth, and we’re not running out of room any time soon. We have the perfect environment for what we need to survive here, including the most basic things like light, heat, gravity and oxygen. Not to mention food and water.
So why in the universe why would we go somewhere which has absolutely nothing that we need to survive?
I have only one good argument for why the space program should exist. It has always pushed the cutting edge of science. It has been a huge contributor to America’s scientific leadership in the world (along with the defense program). It pioneers new ideas and materials. It brings together all scientific disciplines in a way that no other program can.
I’m not sure if this alone is reason enough, though.