Band 6+: Money spent on space exploration is a complete waste. Governments could better spend this money on other things to benefit the nation. To what extent do you agree or disagree? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge and experience. Write at least 250 words.

While some people argue that money spent on space exploration is entirely worthless; therefore, the government should focus on other sectors such as education, transportation, and public facilities, others and I believe that the government should spend adequate funds on the space sector. Money spent on the space sector is certainly helpful in finding new habitable planets and it also encourages the young generation to pursue their careers in this field.

To begin, the first reason why the government should spend money on the space sector is that it is helpful in discovering new habitable planets in the universe. If the government provides sufficient funds to this sector, then scientists can conduct more experiments to explore the universe. Ultimately, by performing more experiments, there is a greater chance of finding a new planet like Earth. In the USA, for instance, the government allocates approximately 20% of its total budget to NASA. Therefore, this agency is the leading space agency in the world to make new discoveries about planets. Not only new discoveries but also new equipment is designed by NASA to explore space. The James Webb Telescope, Hubble telescope, and moon missions, indeed make significant impacts on society by their findings such as new galaxies, stars, planets, and supernovas. Therefore, the government should continue to spend money on the space sector.

Moreover, if the government spends adequate funds on the space sector then it will definitely encourage more students to pursue their careers in this field. This is because, like other prominent sectors such as engineering and medical sectors, youngsters expect high salaries as space scientists. However, to meet people’s salary demands, particularly the space sector, more funds will be required. Therefore, it is the government’s responsibility to allocate sufficient funds to the space field. In India, for example, the government has not paid adequate attention to the ISRO; hence, a smaller number of people are interested in making their careers in the space sector. Perhaps, that is why India has not made any significant breakthroughs in this field so far.

In conclusion, although some people believe that funds spend on space exploration are completely wasted, I reiterate that to make new discoveries and to encourage more youngsters to pursue their careers as astronauts, it is essential to allocate adequate funds to this field.