Worth The Cost Of Space Exploration

As humans, we are born with a natural desire to learn and discover. With space exploration, we are able to do just that. In an online essay called “Is Space Exploration Worth the Cost”, Dr. Joan Vernikos,

While many people support funding NASA and agree with the organization’s goals, there a good number of people who do not. A common reason for this is that they believe that the space program should focus on discovering things that can benefit us immediately, not in the future. This is a valid argument because there

Space exploration should be funded at even greater levels than at present. It has provided scientific, technological, and economic benefits for all mankind. Furthermore it will continue to provide these benefits as long as we continue to explore.

Although space exploration is now being emphasized on and invested in, what does this do to benefit earth or even every individual who lives on Earth? Many writers, engineers, mathematicians, and chemists can agree that space exploration is going to provide more research for medicine and environmental factors. Others may also argue that the risks of exploring another planet will be too damaging because the life or atmosphere as it is will not be the same after humans have made their print on it.

Space exploration funding has been drastically reduced since the conclusion of the Space Race. Even though the Space Race is no longer relevant, it has positively affected human civilization, and we should continue to invest in space exploration to continue this trend. The first and primary reason we should continue to work with space is to aid industries on earth. Most notable is the use of satellites for purposes such as commercial communications, the GPS system, and meteorology. The second reason is because humans have an inherent hunger for knowledge, and space funding helps us develop technology for seeing what’s beyond earth. Space probes such as New Horizons and telescopes such as the James Webb Telescope have expanded our knowledge

Humans obsess over the exploration of the unknown. The majority of our vast solar system remains unexplored. Most humans don’t have an idea what could be waiting for us outside of our atmosphere. Nonetheless, space exploration is not necessary unless our world is either perfect or destroyed. There is no need to throw away billions of dollars on space exploration missions when there are other necessities that need to be sought to first.

Many may argue that space exploration is a waste of time and money. According to websites such as debates.org, we have not done nothing but waste time just to find some improvments in technology. America should continute space exploration and solve mysteries from the past, therefore we will not repeat history. We shaw discover new presences, and desiring facts about

Midway through the recent Netflix documentary Mission Blue (Robert Nixon and Fisher Stevens, 2014), which follows the renowned marine biologist and conservationist Sylvia Earle’s campaign to establish protected marine sanctuaries around the globe, the narrator pauses to note an irony: the same industries that have for over half a century exploited the ocean for oil and gas, wreaking environmental havoc, are also responsible for the greatest technological advances in ocean exploration. These advances, moreover, helped deepen scientific understanding of the ocean and of its ecological import. Ocean

IF we get involved in the exploration of space and the ocean, then when we discover big things then we could proudly tell the world we discovered something big. Let’s say we discovered something big, well then, we would like to explore it more. Like a wrecked ship, if we want to explore it maybe it will have something good then we can explore. But we would have to be careful so no one gets hurt. If we find something big on the river or in space it could mean new things and more discovery.

However, with the same inner drive to discover space should come the intention of wanting to explore the ocean. Humans have laid eyes on only about 5% of the oceans in entirety, and the necessary increase in funding would allow for the other 95% to be seen and known. All the water on our Blue Planet covers roughly 71% of the earth’s surface. Luckily, NOAA researchers have used their inner curiosity and taken action, finding out more and more about the five oceans that span the earth, and all the life that lives in them.

I have gathered you all here to persuade you that space exploration is indeed worth the risk despite what a few people think. Those people think that exploration is a complete waste of time and money, but I would have to completely disagree with them because it has many benefits for the human race. Exploration is worth the risk, because it will give us information and resources that we didn’t have access to before we explored that place.

“Your world is as big as you make it”. Georgia Douglas Johnson once said in her poem “Your World”. Space exploration allows America to generate a great amount of money. If America continues space exploration, new discoveries can be made. Greater wealth and new discoveries could and will better America. This is why space exploration is worth the cost.

Since the beginning of the human race, people have flocked to the ocean. The largest civilizations were built in fertile, coastal areas. Oceanographer and professor at Stanford University, Mark Denny, opened up his book, How the Ocean Works: An Introduction to Oceanography, with the statement, “Throughout history, men and women have been drawn to the sea” (Denny 1). Here in Hawaii, this is especially notable. Hawaii was discovered by islanders who were adventuring across the sea, using it to feed them and working with the currents on their journey. Now, hundreds of years later, visiting the white sandy beaches and crystal blue waters of Hawaii is on nearly the whole world’s bucket list, but it might not be around for much longer. This would be devastating to the planet, as environmental expert Jennifer Weeks says oceans supply most of the Earth’s food and oxygen (Weeks). Not only does the sea provide the most basic necessities for survival, but it has also provided “...Anticancer and antiviral drugs based on substances produced by coral reef species...” (Weeks). Despite all the research that has been done, and is currently underway right this moment, we still know less about the ocean than we do about space! Elisabeth Mann Borgese, an expert in environmentalism, has written, “Our ignorance of the ocean is profound, and although we have learned much during the last hundred years, our knowledge of ocean processes and life in the oceans will remain forever incomplete” (Borgese 23). As Borgese said, it is impossible to learn all there is to know about the sea, but knowing what to do to fix the state of the world’s oceans is vital and attainable information.

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.

The mysterious vastness beyond Earth has allured many scientists to explore and contribute much of their effort to the understanding of space. Although humans have been looking up at space for thousands of years, the physical exploration of this frontier has been only going on for the past few decades. Our current understanding of space is unparalleled to any time before in our history, but we still only know a small fraction of what there is to learn. Governments around the world spend about $40 billion dollars a year (Rockefeller, 2010) hoping to undertake tasks such as “human exploration of the solar system” to discovering the origins of life itself (Tatarewicz, 2009, p. 531). Recently, the private sector has also shown interest in space exploration in order to engage in profitable activities such as harnessing minerals from asteroids. Although it is easy to debate about the benefits and negatives of space exploration in its entirety, it is simpler focus on one aspect of it - the direct effect it has to those down on Earth. Rather than trying to decide whether or not going to other planets is worth it, this paper will argue about the value of the terrestrial benefits of space exploration. It is an important topic to think about as programs such as space exploration change lives and help acquire knowledge. Despite the large costs associated with space exploration, the multitude of discoveries in the past few decades has greatly improved daily life on Earth, the jobs the