The Pros And Cons Of Robots To Space

The article, “Robots on Earth” by Jerry West, explains that although robots may be evil in movies and books, they help us more than people may think. In the article, West discusses how the opinions of the media are quite different than the jobs that real robots perform. Humans have many difficult jobs that must be done for the good of the population, which is why we have robots to complete these tasks. Chores such as welding, and working in factories harm our health; so, robots do these jobs to keep us safe. Robots in space may do simple missions so that astronauts can focus on more important duties. Also, astronauts use robotic equipment; such as treadmills; to stay healthy while in space. Other robots are used for people with disabilities

Scientific Capability.” (Tennessean) People today are not as excited about going to other places in space. Human space travel has been stunted by recent political changes in America. With that, the people that actually want to go to other places in space mainly want to see humans go somewhere new. Some people want other things to go in place of humans. “Unlike robots, only people have the intelligence and expert knowledge needed to unravel these mysteries.” (Mindell) If humans don’t go to other places in the solar system, this takes away the experience and awe of knowing that people can go to amazing places like the moon and Mars. While I think robots and technology should be used in exploration of space. I think it’s important to keep the human element involved directly. So people can see that nothing is quite impossible.

1. Robots don’t have the human ability to make quick decisions in response to changing or new conditions. They can only wait for time-delayed instructions from Earth. They can only handle existing problems but can’t solve problems they meet for the first time. Human are more mobile than current robot explorers. (Mann 1)

This claim is not necessarily true being that robots cannot get the experience of space like humans can. In Kennedy’s speech gives an example by stating, “An instrument recently developed to record automatically the impact of acceleration upon an astronaut’s eyes will also be of help to small children suffering miserably from eye defects…”. The robots are incapable of experiencing the physical change when leaving Earth and entering space so we are unable to observe these changes when using robots. Secondly, robots do not have the desire to search for more like humans. Robots do not contain the same drive and want to learn the possibilities of space so it is pointless to consider sending them.

It is not true that human space travel is cheaper in any sense; life support systems, places to sleep and work, manual control systems all take up room, and most importantly, cost fuel. However, when it comes to planetary exploration, humans can get the job done better. They adapt to the situations they’re put into. A robot can only do everything it was told it was supposed to do, but programmer bound to the Earth will only think to program so many things, even if they are very thorough. Robots movements encompass a narrow set of navigable terrains whereas a human with mobility equipment can explore much further to garner samples or collect data (Crawford). A human can also think on their feet, which is essential in many mission scenarios. Far from the earth, where communication is severely limited by the distances involved, robots lag the humans watching. Events that occur for only a few minutes, like storms and novel hazards like rockslides or avalanches, may be completely missed by a rover and can even compromise the mission. When delay inhibits data collection and the safety of crucial components, this is where on-site humans can shine. Specifically, Crawford (2010) outlines five areas where human travel is necessary, which for brevity has been condensed into four. The focus is mainly on why humans are essential for these types of missions.

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.

On the contrary, the majority of space missions have been conducted by robots. The robotic method of space exploration is superior than human space flight. These robotic missions are a fraction of the cost of human missions, can go much farther away from Earth, are much safer than any human mission, and can conduct more research than a human space mission. First, the cost to spend another rover to mars would be around two and half billion dollars and the estimated price of a human mission to mars is fifty billion dollars.

Society takes such interest in manned missions because there is a risk that the astronauts will not make it back to Earth alive. NASA has had two manned space flight catastrophes to date: the Challenger disaster (cite) and the Columbia disaster (cite) resulting in the loss of 16 total lives. This does not include the failure of Apollo 1 (cite) before its liftoff. If missions to space are fully robotic, there is much less risk for the loss of human life. The vehicles sent into space would not need to be able to support life, or return safely to Earth, all drastically reducing the cost of any missions to space. Probes are just as capable as humans of recording quantitative data and sending it to earth, so that it can be used towards scientific

Nevertheless, If NASA were to cut back on sending humans and instead send robots, they could save bundles of cash, and possibly, in some cases, lives (Etzioni, Amitai). Because of the vast expanses of space and the mystery that it contains, along with the action-packed movies made about space that captivate America even beyond their opening weekends, such as Star Wars, BattleStar Galactica, the humorous Space Balls, etc, and the simple fear of not knowing what, or who, is or is not out there, every person has some amount of curiosity in them in regard to the dark skies surrounding our earth. It is simply human nature to want to discover the unknown (Boucher, Marc p.2).

Space is something that we humans are never going to be able to comprehend and understand what it is exactly. But knowing that still is not going to stop us from trying to know as much about space as we possibly can. The Apollo missions took that step to reaching greater heights, and landing on our moon to know more about what it is and what is on it. These missions changed our look on space travel and what humans can accomplish if we put our minds to it.

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.

outer space is what we want. They are not robotic; they will not malfunction. They can help

As humans, we always push to explore for new discoveries, it is in our blood to explore and push scientific boundaries. Space exploration has allowed us to expand our technology, foster a curiosity in humans, discover new worlds, and most importantly push even further to discover life in a new planet. With the advancement of new technology and innovators, there has been a significant discussion whether sending humans with the support of robots is the most efficient method. However, there are great arguments made that sending exclusively robots on space exploration is the best strategy. There is

Space exploration is devoted to seeking out the unknowns of the universe. Manned and robotic missions alike have contributed priceless knowledge of our planet’s surroundings and beyond. However, with the current geopolitical climate, funding, and other practicalities, it is not reasonable for the exploration of space to be done exclusively by humans.

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.