Over the past century, with the development of technology, space exploration has become one of the most interesting discussion topics. Space programmes can definitely be beneficial since they help to prevent Earth’s disasters and give people understanding of the Universe. However, there are some obvious drawbacks.
The main advantage of space exploration is ability to predict and prevent catastrophic consequences to the Earth due to the variety of examples in outer space. For instance, scientists can analyse billions of planets, their life span, climate, and other important information. Thus, based on this data, it becomes possible to predict the destiny of our planet and solar system in general, helping to prevent events that may cause disasters. Another benefit of space exploration is knowledge about the world where mankind lives that was hidden in slow civilisation’s development for centuries. To put it simply, people were always interested in space, they tried to count the stars and create interstellar maps to orientate on Earth; however, only now it is possible to get actual knowledge based on scientific evidence.
On the other hand, there are some drawbacks of exploring space. First of all, the money required to send telescopes and satellites to space and build observatories of the new generation can be used to end up global starving, unemployment and water shortage. It is clear that sometimes billion dollar missions can last minutes because of a tiny mistake. This results in people questioning funding these programmes, as it is a waste of money. Secondly, space technology can be used to create weapons of massive destruction. For example, in past decades, space technology was actively used to create hypersonic aircrafts, stealth bombers and submarines, resulting in military races between political opponents. It is important to keep unique technology out of the military’s reach to prevent catastrophes such as Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
To conclude, although space exploration may cause financial and political problems for many people, it is still relevant due to its importance for humanity in general and there are no signs that this industry is going to decline in future.