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“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

 

“Space, the final frontier.”

 

 These are two of the phrases we have grown up hearing, yet many never know that these quotations represent the importance of the advancement of humanity. The exploration of the unknown has driven human curiosity since the dawn of time, as cavemen explored to gain knowledge, the Vikings explored to gain knowledge and even Europeans crossed the ocean to discover a new continent, North America. When technology developed enough to allow expedition into space, it became one of the greatest outlets for the human curiosity that is so vital to the human soul.

 

Space Exploration includes human space travel, satellites, probes and other robotic devices that can be used to research and observe space.  Not only does this technology provide us with the ability to research what extends beyond our planet and atmosphere, but certain expeditions have allowed many unexpected spin-off products to be created, such as water purifiers, robotic surgical arms, indoor air quality monitoring, portable vacuum cleaners, cell-phone cameras and memory foam mattresses. These modern inventions accidentally came to fruition during the research and creation of bigger projects. These spinoffs are incredibly important, as they have evolved the technology and thinking of every modern innovation

 

Water purifiers used to filter water aboard the International Space Station were adapted for use used for areas at-risk of drought on earth. The Neuroarm, a robotic surgical arm is now being used in clinical experience to remove inoperable tumors from patients. However, it’s design was first inspired by the family of Canadian robotic arms, Canadarm, Canadarm2 and Dextre, that did the heavy lifting and receiving of payloads on the ISS. Air quality systems were improved here on earth after an Ethylene, bacterial, virus and mold removing systems were created so that astronauts could grow plants in space.  All of these spin-offs help benefit our world in ways that are unknown to a majority of the population since they disregard the practice because of the lofty price.

 

Although, there have been multiple economical disputes over the ethics of space exploration.  Some believe that the 0.06% of taxpaying dollars that support NASA put too much of a strain on the monetary funds that could be used to benefit other organizations, such as cancer research.  However, some believe that it isn’t ethical to explore space when we do not yet completely understand earth. The truth is, to understand the world we live in we must first understand how it came to be. The only way to do so is the exploration of the space beyond our tiny planet.  Space exploration will help us do so as it provides useful knowledge on how the planets of our solar system came to be and how it functions as a whole.

 

Space exploration has done so much for the advancement of humanity. If NASA were to be provided with more money, they could complete their missions and the construction of satellites and other space paraphernalia in a fraction of the time.  In fact, if the space exploration were provided with the same budget as the U.S. military, they could accomplish a manned mission to Mars with an overwhelming amount of funding to spare. So, the next time you lay down on your memory foam mattress or take a picture with your cellphone’s camera, remember that the exploration of space led you here and that it deserves to be commended and funded indefinitely.