Space is the final frontier for all human here on Earth. It has introduced unimaginable worlds that are unknown and undiscovered. It has shown the world that these so called “Impossible missions” become reality in front of our eyes. No one has ever believed in humanity that one day we will have the ability to send objects deep into space. Voyager 1 which is about 18,000,000,000 km away from the earth, making it the furthest man made object in space. This great accomplishment could not have been possible without the funding and development of NASA.
NASA, which stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration, was started in 1958. Ever since then NASA has always provided the American people with many technological advancements throughout its time. Not only does NASA provide technological advancements, but also the ability for humans to explore and discover space. Although NASA and the space program cost taxpayers millions of dollars, it should be continued to be funded, because of the technological advancements, it provides to improve lives back here on earth, the ability to explore and discover, and to continue to inspire the next generation of kids.
The next generations of kids are the future of our country and how we inspire them will be the key to their future success. As a kid, I have always enjoyed watching Science Fiction Movies and shows. The Science Fiction genre has to do with a lot of imagination and space. It got my imagination running and thinking about how human society could develop to be like these Science Fiction movies in the future. To this day many people still enjoy watching Science Fiction movies and shows.
Hugh Pickens a physicist writes, “MSNBC reports on a recent panel that discussed studies showing that people, especially children, often model their behavior on what they see on the big (or small) screen and science shows up in many Hollywood films. ” An example could be star wars. Star wars still has a strong impact on all viewers of all ages. It introduced many people especially kids, to the idea of space and what is really out there. It got young kids thinking about space and the worlds out there that are yet to be unexplored.
NASA could provide us with the answers and the opportunities to make it a reality and not just an imagination in our mind. NASA’s continued accomplishments still inspire kids to believe that Science fiction will one day be a reality. With every year that goes by, NASA has the people believing that these “Science Fiction” movies/shows will someday be a reality. During the 1960’s people only dreamed about having a human footprint on the moon. Finally with the help of government spending, NASA successfully launched and landed on the moon in the year 1969.
NASA made an American dream come a reality in only a few years. The most recent notable NASA accomplishment was the Curiosity landing back in 2012. NASA was able to successfully land curiosity using complex landing systems to get it safely on Mars. Know that too has become a reality for all to see. None of these great accomplishments could have been possible without the necessary funding to NASA. The argument many people want an answer for is, “Why should we spend money on space exploration when we have many problems here on Earth?
It is true that earth faces many kinds of difficulties and problems such as war, poverty, obesity, and many others. The funding that NASA receives could potentially fix some these problems. Let’s not forget about how our own oceans on earth aren’t half way to being explored and mapped. And yet why does NASA continue to be funded? One of many answers is Human Nature. The only reason we live in a modern and advanced society is because of our desire to explore, expand and progress. What separates us from other species on earth is our desire for knowledge and technology to improve our society.
That comes into play when we talk about why we should fund NASA. NASA holds the key for the many uncovered mysterious about the universe that may further increase our knowledge about the world we live in. Every accomplishment NASA has done has a negative side to it just like any other program. Each exploration NASA produces and launches costs hundreds of millions of dollars. For example NASA’s mars mission in 2012 costs 2. 5 billion to fund. Many people believe that the 2. 5 billion dollars could be used to create jobs, help end poverty, or be used in a place to improve quality of life back here on earth.
But the issue that people seem to ignore is how much Americans spend on alcohol and other issues in the world that don’t seem to help fix problems found on earth. In 2006, according to the USDA, Americans spent more 154 billion on alcohol alone. Why should we criticize funding a program that contributes in further helping and improving our society, when Americans waste their hard earned money on alcohol rather than use it on making earth a better place? Since NASA began in 1958, it has accumulated over 466 billion of funds over the years and every bit of that money has been to help our society.
The majority off that money goes into missions that expand our knowledge of the unknown world we have yet to explore. However, in order for NASA to counter the high cost of these missions, it created the Two-Way Technology Transfer, a program in which NASA produces inventions from its missions to give back to society to benefit from. Much of NASA’s ability to invent technology to help improve life back on earth or better known as “spin offs” comes from these missions that NASA is able to produce and launch.
These NASA spin-off technologies are commercial products and services which are produced with the help of NASA, through research and development contracts. Some examples are frozen dried foods, firefighting equipment, the GPS, and many more. NASA’s official website states that thousands of spin-offs have been produced from its mission. We probably wouldn’t be where we are at without the thousands of inventions NASA has invented. These inventions can be found all around us. In return these products have improved and changed how we live. NASAs federal budget has been decreasing over the years due to federal cuts by the government.
Since 1966, the percentage of total federal funds NASA receives has gone from 4% to less than 1 percent in 2014. The effect of the budget cuts has crippled NASA’s ability to explore space. Without the necessary funds, NASA now works with a tight budget that limits the launch and production of new missions that could possibly uncover many great discoveries. These missions are needed to further enhance our knowledge about space and its contents. Space is right outside of earth’s doorstep and along with it are the many unexplored places. The more funding NASA receives, the more we will uncover the many mysterious of the universe.
For years now the U. S. economy has been falling and struggling to get back to when it was prosperous. This has forced the government to decrease the amount of funding NASA and other government programs. Neil DeGrasse Tyson is an American Astrophysics, cosmologist, author, and a science communicator. According to Neil, “Innovations drives economy it’s especially been true since the Industrial Revolution. ” This was exceptionally true since the industrial revolution filled the economy with many innovations that helped the economy grow such as the steam engine.
The steam engine led to the innovation of factories which sped up production and also powered the very first steamboats in the late 18th century. As such, increasing NASA’s budget will help boost the economy by adding more innovations that could potentially improve the economy. Innovations are what make the economy more prosperous and efficient, so why stop funding the leading government program in innovations made? Technology isn’t the only way NASA helps the economy. People believe that the money the government invests in NASA does nothing in return to helping our economy.
Lauren Lyons is a science communicator, engineer, and a space policy analyst. In her article 5 popular Misconceptions about NASA, Lauren states that “Studies estimate a 7-14 dollar return on investments for every 1 dollar of NASA expenditure, with all of it going directly back into the U. S. Treasury. ” Obviously NASA has always been giving back more than it gets into the economy. Funding the space program has and will always benefit the U. S. economy. Another critical reason that is debated on why the space program shouldn’t be funded is that there are other government programs that should be prioritized above the funding of NASA.
One program that stands out from the rest is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admiration (NOAA) program. NOAA is a government program that is responsible for the nations living marine resources and to explore the earth’s oceans. In 2012 congress gave NASA 18. 7 billion, while NOAA received 4. 5 billion dollars. Many people feel that NOAA contributes more to helping and understanding earth more than NASA. Those people don’t understand the real importance of why NASA should be given the priority. The Senate Appropriations Committee, which oversees the funding of government programs, has been losing confidence in NOAA.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski is the chairwoman of the commerce, justice, Science, and related agencies appropriations subcommittee. According to Senator Barbara, “Unfortunately, the Committee has lost confidence in NOAA’s ability to control procurement costs or articular reliable funding profiles. ” NOAA as you read has become an unreliable program that has been costing the government money. NASA in the other hand has been successful in gaining the governments trust. When people hear the name “NASA” the first thing that pops in their mind is space, mars, and the universe.
What they don’t really know is that NASA does more than just space research. In the past NASA has been known to participate in other earth related programs to better our understanding and find new ways to help keep our planet healthy. NASA has done Air-quality research that will give a better understanding on how wildfires affect air quality and develop more effective standards for keeping our air clean. Its air that we all inhale and NASA is working to help keep the oxygen as healthy as possible around the clock.
It doesn’t just end their, NASA also keeps track of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere that have risen do to the burning of fossil fuels into the atmosphere. According to NASA, as of 2013 CO2 levels surpassed 400 ppm for the first time in recorded history. That means 60 percent of fossil fuels emissions stay in the air. To combat the high carbon dioxide emissions, NASA has been into Alternative-energy research that will help keep harmful fossil fuels out of our atmosphere. The research into alternative energy is done to find effective and clean energy to help lower the carbon dioxide emissions.