[extropy-chat] Ken MacLeod on space exploration

[Giu1i0 Pri5c0]

>From the Sunday Herald, science fiction author Ken MacLeod puts the case for
humankind's bold journey into space. Last January, President Bush announced
a new US-manned space programme. Complete the space station, replace the
Shuttle, return to the Moon, build a Moon base, learn more stuff, go to
Mars... and worlds beyond. It would be "a journey, not a race", he insisted;
a human adventure, with no prospect of an end: "Human beings are headed out
into the cosmos."
It's also important to clarify the goal. Ultimately, if civilisation
survives, people will go to Mars "and worlds beyond" not because they must,
but because they want to. It's not that it's necessary for the sake of
studying Mars, but that it's vital for the sake of enriching Earth, and
helping civilisation to survive and expand. The real justification is
spiritual, not scientific. As the prophet wrote: "Where there is no vision,
the people perish." Vision, especially television, isn't enough. We need to
do more than see - we need to reach out and touch it. On that point Bush is
right. There's no guarantee that his project will take us there. But one way
or another, humanity is headed out into the cosmos. The Space Age, far from
being over, is only beginning.

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