Hi, I urge that it is a must for human civilization to expand to other planets and beyond. Our technologically advanced society seems to be on the brink of disaster with threats of nuclear disasters, over population, water shortage, and possible NEO impacts. The only way for us to avoid these catastrophes is to spread ourselves onto other plantes and other solar systems. It seems as though we are not moving into space fast enough. I am not sure if we will be able to have a mass exodus of people to other planets at the rate we are going. The only way for us to overcome this technological adolescence is to use all means necessary to ensure the survival of the human species, because as far as we know human intelligence may be a fluke and the only of its type in the whole universe. Wouldn't it be a shame if humanity ended because the cost to go into space was to large to be considered? It has been 40 years almost since we put a human on a heavenly body... 40 years and the space program is still in the hands of the government. We need to start to make space obtainable and profitable before we can build huge spaceships to take us to the cosmos. Please respond if you support this or have something to say about ways to help human survival. -Overdrive6
I don't think we will have to rush ourselves to much but it is simple mathematics that a species has more chance to survive if it has a large population and is spread over a large area (one should rather speak of a volume in this case). Still, America wasn't colonized in a year either and the people who went wanted to. One can't just order people to go colonize some remote planet who might be hostile to earth life (virusses, bacteria, some totally unknown lifeforms,...) Besides spreading the human race amongst the stars isn't going to change our sometimes rather violent nature. The scale of war might just become larger together with the misery that comes with it.
Actually, this is an exciting time for space exploration. With new and better rockets, the X-33 and X-34, and newer technology like tethers being developed, the cost to go into space will be going down relatively shortly. (But probably not as quickly as we would like it.) Scientific America had a cover story on what's being developed a few months ago if you want to do some reading. If people want to get involved now, there are groups out there. I posted about a month ago about the Artemis Society International, a group I'm a part of. It's trying, through the Artemis Project, to establish a commercially viable lunar station. Anyone can participate and contribute something valuable. You can learn more by going to www.asi.org or emailing me at malone6@hotmail.com.
Sorry to bring this up but do any of you know how long it would take even at the speed of light to reach the nearest solar system to our own (i think it`s about 4 light years away so 4 years at least) but then remember even if we could develop anti-mater engines (sposedly the most powerfull avaiable) acording to most of the thories I have read it is almost imposible to break the speed of light. Reaching it too isn`t the easyest of tasks. ------------------ [This message has been edited by woody (edited May 25, 1999).]
To Woody: Some minor comments on your post. 1. Although the nearest star is 4 light years away, it is not currently known to be a solar system. In other words, when you arrived there, there is no guarantee you'd find planets. 2. Anti-matter engines are not currently available. But what you read about the power is correct I believe; they deliver many times the specific impulse of a chemical rocket (and of an ion drive or a solar sail for that matter). 3. Special relativity tells us that your own elapsed time, if you travel close to light speed, is much less than an observer's on earth. So you don't wait 4 years, but less.
