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Why is space exploration important and why should we spend valuable resorces and space exploration insted of fixing problems here on earth? We should spend valuable resources on space exploration because without space exploration we would not have navigation systems, television, and weather moneters. All of those things play an important part in our lives that we take for granet.

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We should spend valuable resources because in the future if we need to live in space we know enough about space, we should also spend valuable resources on space because we should know what's living in space and what's going on in space.

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I have absolutly no doubt in mind that navigation is imporant because

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These are the benefits of space exploration

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The Planetary Society * Aug 30, 2021

Your guide to advocating for space in a complicated world

Most people who love space and believe in exploration have probably heard this once or twice: "We shouldn't waste money on space exploration when there are problems to deal with here on Earth."

While public health concerns, social injustices, climate change, and other urgent issues are important to address, solving these problems doesn't depend on defunding space programs.

This can be a difficult conversation to navigate, so we've outlined a few ideas here that you can share when advocating for space.

Space spending pays off

If someone is arguing that public funds should be spent on solving the world's problems, they should know that money spent on NASA positively impacts the U.S. economy. We get the same kind of payoff for space spending in other countries. Spending on space supports highly skilled jobs, fuels technology advancements with practical applications, and creates business opportunities that feed back into the economy. This in turn grows the pool of public money that can be spent on solving the world's most pressing problems.

Space research directly impacts Earthly problems

When people apply themselves to the challenges of exploring space, they make discoveries that can help the world in other ways too. Studying how we might grow food in orbit or on Mars yields insights into growing food in extreme conditions on Earth, generating knowledge that can help mitigate the impacts of climate change. Medical research conducted on the International Space Station helps us understand the human body in new ways, helping save lives and improve quality of life.

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Studying space helps us understand our own world

Studying the cosmos gives us an important perspective shift. When we learn about what lies beyond Earth, it gives us context for understanding our own planet. Studying the other worlds of our solar system and beyond makes it clear that Earth is a precious oasis for life. When we sent spacecraft to Venus we saw how a runaway greenhouse effect turned the world from a habitable planet to an absolute hellscape. When astronauts travel into space they see just how thin and tenuous Earth's atmosphere is, appreciating the fragile balance in which we live. A cosmic perspective underscores the importance of protecting our planet's habitability and encourages investment in that effort.

Studying space may one day save us all

All the social and environmental progress in the world won't help us if an asteroid impacts the Earth. We have to explore space to find and study the asteroids and comets in our cosmic neighborhood if we want to make sure we can defend our planet if an object ever heads our way.

NEO Surveyor Artist's Concept The NEO Surveyor mission will look for asteroids and comets with orbits that come close to EarthImage: NASA/JPL-Caltech/The Planetary Society

Space is inspiring

Not every child who dreams of becoming an astronaut will get that opportunity. This is a sad truth that many of us know from experience. But to be inspired to aim for something so grand gives kids the motivation to study hard and gain skills in science, engineering, medicine, or other fields that benefit humanity and directly help overcome problems that we face as a species.

And inspiration isn't just for kids. When we marvel at the beauty of Jupiter's clouds or the mystery of Enceladus' oceans, we get an opportunity to appreciate the wonder and majesty of this cosmos that we inhabit. The idea that life might exist elsewhere in the universe reminds us that we might not be the only planet struggling to achieve balance, justice, and sustainability. And even in the bleakest of times, there's something beautiful about still striving to achieve something great and discover something that could change how we see ourselves and our cosmos forever.

The plumes of Enceladus The mysteries of the cosmos are waiting to be solved. What new insights will the future of exploration uncover?Image: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SSI / Gordan Ugarkovic

There's plenty of room at the table

There's no denying that there are many important issues facing humanity that need fixing. But to deal with those problems doesn't mean we have to stop looking up, stop exploring, and stop making discoveries.

Human civilization has astonishing capacity, and we can do more than one important thing at a time. If someone thinks that a particular issue should get more attention and investment, they can and should advocate for that. The problems we face don't persist because we're spending money on space science and exploration. And there's no reason to pit our aspirations against one another.

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Why space exploration is always worthwhile

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A toolkit to help you advocate for the value of exploring space even when there are important problems to be solved here on Earth.

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In concluson we should spend valuable reasorses on pace exploration. I have a reason to belive this because sapace exploration has helped us with navigation,  good paying jobs, tellivision programs, and weather monetors. We might take things like this for granet but they all play important roles in our lifes.

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No such thing as a free launch.

Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani/EPA

This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

I don't suppose that readers would expect me to contradict the title of this article - that would be tantamount to signing my own redundancy notice. But, given an environment where phrases such as "pay restraint," "austerity package" and "falling service provision" are bandied around, it might be thought somewhat profligate to suggest that millions of pounds (euros, dollars) are spent on exploration of space.

Why do we need to go to Mars? How many pictures of galaxies do we need? Surely that money could be better spent on more worthy areas, such as health and education?

But the millions do not go up in smoke: they are used to pay for jobs and services.

Rockets and spaceflight instruments do not assemble themselves. They are designed and built by people, who get paid. They are fabricated from components which have to be manufactured and then purchased. The community engaged in the space industry includes specialist scientists and engineers, designers, graphic artists and IT professionals, as well as a vast support system: HR, catering, cleaning, etc.

This is where much of the space budget is spent - on salaries that in turn generate a market for other goods and services (houses, clothing, food) - as well as returning funds to the government through taxation. In fact, the European Space Agency might be regarded as a massive money-spinning operation, in which every euro contributed by the government is returned ten-fold to the nation in terms of the value of the jobs generated.

How the space budget is spent is just one of the major benefits which comes from the UK's space industry, one of the fastest-growing sectors of the UK economy.

There are other spin-offs, because "space" is much closer than is generally thought. When talking about space, people usually think about stars and galaxies, wonderful images from telescopes, Neil Armstrong walking on the Moon, the rings of Saturn, and so on.

Looking much closer to home, the armada of satellites orbiting the Earth that, among many other things, beam information to satellite navigation systems, broadcast television programmes and monitor the weather are part of a global space network. Where would we be now if we didn't have the internet? These are daily services which we take for granted, and are rarely, if ever, considered as "space exploration."

Along with an understanding of what goes into space exploration comes an appreciation of the people who help to make space exploration happen: teachers. Without their inspirational support and guidance, we would not have succeeding generations of engineers, scientists and other specialists who make the UK's space industry so successful.

But the UK has been so successful in growing its space industry, it doesn't have enough "homegrown" specialists to employ. So we need more teachers, more trained scientists and engineers - and more space industry.

Is space a waste of money? Certainly not.

The author recently gave a talk on this topic at the Cheltenham Science Festival.

Monica Grady is Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences at The Open University.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates - and become part of the discussion - on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Space.com.

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Of Course Space Exploration is Worth the Money

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This article was originally published on The Conversation. The publication contributed this article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. I don't suppose that readers would expect me to contradict the title of this article - that would be tantamount to signing my own redundancy notice.