The Space Of Space Exploration

2152 Words9 Pages
“That 's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. Neil Armstrong 's 1969 lunar landing was one of humanity 's greatest accomplishments. Since then, we have found that an infinite supply of knowledge and resources await us just outside our atmosphere. Today, however, critics are beginning to argue more and more that the cost of space exploration is too high, and therefore new technological developments should be left to the private sector rather than the taxpayers pockets. Some feel that the funding of NASA and space exploration is no longer necessary or important, but whether funded privately or b the government, funding of space exploration is imperative because NASA is essentially the only agency with the technological…show more content…
Though space exploration has remained a symbol of the government that most look up to and think highly of, recent budget cuts have raised cause for concern. In the 2013 article “Budget Gains For Physical Sciences Will Be Uncertain At Best”, author David Kramer states “The President has proposed a combination of tax increases and cuts to entitlement programs to pay for the increased spending. Leadership of the Republican-controlled House of Representatives has made clear its opposition of tax increases” (para. 3). With the threat of Congress cutting NASA 's budget, the United State 's sixty year preeminence in space exploration is in serious peril. Many suggest that our space programs and some aspects of space exploration be funded by the private sector. While this may benefit programs such as NASA short-term, the complete takeover by the private sector would prove detrimental. NASA is a large organization with an even bigger budget, though it has no way of generating revenue to sustain missions. However, if government funding is completely lost, NASA will have to depend solely on funding from corporations, causing it to be split into multiple small, private entities which would generate profit, causing the NASA as we know it to cease to
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