The Future of NASA

[Autumnlicious]

NASA requires the act of rebuilding it up before we can use it for anything.

I know, I worked there (Ames). And boy, was it suffering through the Bush years, which culminated in the complete destruction of the biological sciences division.

Why do we need NASA? Because, at it's best, government will always have resources and the gall to sacrifice that allows for unique and fast developments that are then used by industry.

If you're skeptical of the good or outcomes of NASA, I invite you to examine what they say about themselves (http://techtran.msfc.nasa.gov/at_home.html).

NASA right now is too weak to handle any challenge as grand as interplanetary travel. JPL can barely keep the unmanned division healthy.

NASA needs to grow back before we can use it again.

And a big fuck you to every republican, liberal and waste of human flesh who advocated for the cuts to NASA budget. Seriously, they get 0.02% or so of the fucking national budget. Unlike certain other things (DOD, I'm looking at you).

[AnunZi]

You think there is some value in a space program even if that program would never get beyond our own solar system?

Yes I do.

I think one of the most important questions facing humanity is the old "Are we alone?". There are to my mind two places (Europa and Ganymede) in the solar system we need to take a much closer look at to help answer this question. I think if we can find life ( even microbial life) on either of these fascinating little moons then that more or less answers it. If life has developed independently twice in our solar system, then chances are it’s happened somewhere else in the countless billions of planets out there.

There is also a proven trend of developments made for the space program benefiting everyday life on the ground.

I think claiming the space program is dead and that it has “No value” is short sighted at best.

So... I'm dissappointed with this whole mess as I'm sure many of you are, but the interest isn't gone for human exploration and commercial spaceflight is already here, so it's really only a matter of time, IMO.

This I agree with. All we need is the incentive for companies to go into space. HE3 could well be the ticket

And a big fuck you to every republican, liberal and waste of human flesh who advocated for the cuts to NASA budget.

This made me lol. Its also very true, I agree with you that it is important. Or at least its important to me!

[Zen Badger]

Well if we don't colonise space soon(even if it is "just' the solar system) we won't have the resources remaining to do it at all.

If that happens we might as well climb back into the trees, because we won't have the resouces to run a technological civilization either.

[AnunZi]

Well if we don't colonise space soon(even if it is "just' the solar system) we won't have the resources remaining to do it at all.

If that happens we might as well climb back into the trees, because we won't have the resouces to run a technological civilization either.

hehe, fair point mate

Of course, once we reach that point we reach that point we are royally fucked anyway.

We only have 5 billion years or so till the sun turns into a red dwarf and eats Earth.
Admittedly we will have wiped each other out in some stupid pointless war by then anyway… more than likely anyway...

We need to hurry!! Think of the kids!!!

[Autumnlicious]

The way I see it, we need to start colonizing Mars for at least the purpose of keeping the human race alive if planet 1 or 2 decides to fuck itself into oblivion.