Criticism of space exploration

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Criticism of space exploration encompasses various arguments against investing in space programs and missions. Opponents point to the substantial financial costs, suggesting that funds allocated for space exploration could be better spent addressing urgent issues on Earth, such as poverty, healthcare, education, and environmental degradation. Critics express concerns about risks to human life, environmental impacts like potential contamination of celestial bodies, and the possibility of militarizing space, which could exacerbate geopolitical tensions. These critiques reflect the ongoing debate over resource allocation, technological priorities, and the responsibilities of humanity both on Earth and in outer space.

Contents

History

Hannah Arendt (pictured) argued against space exploration in the early stages of the Apollo program. Hannah Arendt auf dem 1. Kulturkritikerkongress, Barbara Niggl Radloff, FM-2019-1-5-9-16 (cropped).jpg
Hannah Arendt (pictured) argued against space exploration in the early stages of the Apollo program.

Apollo missions

In 1963, years before the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landing, German-American critical theorist Hannah Arendt argued: [1]

The conquest of space and the science that made it possible have come perilously close to this point. If they ever should reach it in earnest, the stature of man would not simply be lowered by all standards we know of but have been destroyed.

Throughout the 1960s, Students for a Democratic Society organized anti-NASA protests on college campuses. Sit-ins occurred at Columbia University's Pupin Physics Laboratories and MIT's Instrumentation Laboratory, as both conducted NASA research which was implemented by the United States military in Vietnam. [2] In July 1969, civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy organized a protest at Cape Canaveral (then Cape Kennedy) to oppose the "inhuman priority" of space exploration over tackling poverty and racism. [3] When addressing the crowd, Abernathy said that "[t]he $23 billion we've spent going to the Moon has stolen money the black man needs for job retraining and schools." [4]

Contemporary arguments

Climate change

Amitai Etzioni wrote in 2018 that space colonization "brings with it an unavoidable subtext of despair", distracting from efforts to halt anthropogenic climate change, arguing that "any serious Mars endeavor will inevitably cut into the drive to save Mother Earth". [5] Some studies suggest that the projected increase in space travel will damage the ozone layer. [6] [7] A single rocket launch produces 300 tonnes of carbon dioxide, staying longer in the upper atmosphere than emissions caused by airplanes or jets. [8] Thomas Fink, however, argues the long-term benefits of space science offset the ecological risks. [9]

Wastefulness

Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. condemned space exploration, labeling it as wasteful. [10] In the lead up to the Apollo program, Congressmen voiced doubts about the costliness of the missions. [11] In 1977, Governor of California Jerry Brown was criticized for prioritizing space programs over addressing social issues. [12]

Political

Alexis C. Madrigal, writing in the Los Angeles Sentinel in 2012, said that [13]

It would appear that the fathers of our nation would allow a few thousand hungry people to die for the lack of a few thousand dollars while they would contaminate the moon and its sterility for the sake of 'progress' and spend billions of dollars in the process, while people are hungry, ill-clothed, poorly educated (if at all).

Haris Durrani, writing in The Nation , argued in 2019 that "[s]paceflight almost invariably involves activities that directly subjugate marginalized peoples". [14] [ which? ] Mark R. Royce, writing for Providence magazine, argued in 2020 that rather than being a non-partisan, inoffensive, and humanistic endeavor, space exploration is "largely irrational, originating at the intersection of the early Cold War arms race, the mass hysteria of the Red Scare, and the utopian worship of technical progress that characterized the mid-twentieth century." [15] Gabrielle Cornish argued in 2019 that the moon landing was "at its core, a territorial conquest" in the context of the Cold War. [16]

Linguistic

Several critics have likened space exploration to settler-colonialism and imperialism [17] [18] , with critics such as Deondre Smiles arguing that the exploration of space could lead to further colonization on Earth, pointing to the controversial construction of observatories in Mauna Kea. [19] Sociologist Zuleyka Zevallos at Swinburne University has criticized the language used within and around space science, writing that "there is no democratic way to colonize other lands" and that "It is about profit, and profit always marginalizes minorities". In contrast, Robert Zubrin of the Mars Society responds that it is different from comparing the history of colonialism on Earth with the establishment of colonies on Mars. [20] [21] [22]

From within astrophysics

Fulbright scholar and Mars colonization advocate Zahaan Bharmal outlined three hypothetical arguments against human colonization of Mars: (1) that humans will contaminate Mars, (2) that robots have inherent advantages over humans in space exploration, and (3) that issues like climate change, overpopulation, and nuclear war should be prioritized over colonization. While broadly supportive of Mars colonization, Bharmal argues that humans "are perhaps not ready to go to Mars." [23]

Public opinion

Contrary to the common misconception that the American space program in the 60s had a wide base of support, unifying America, belief that the Apollo program was worth the time and money invested peaked at 51% for a few months after the 1969 Moon landing, and was otherwise fluctuating between 35-45%. [24] [25] [26]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "The Conquest of Space and the Stature of Man". The New Atlantis . 2020-09-26. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  2. ↑ Maher, Neil M. (16 July 2019). "Opinion | Not Everyone Wanted a Man on the Moon (Published 2019)". The New York Times . Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  3. ↑ Smith, David (2019-07-14). "'Whitey's on the moon': why Apollo 11 looked so different to black America". the Guardian. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  4. ↑ Robertson, Jack (1969-06-30). "Space Is Not Black". The Nation. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  5. ↑ "Humanity Would Be Better off Saving Earth, Rather Than Colonizing Mars". The National Interest. 25 August 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  6. ↑ Kluger, Jeffrey (2023-04-19). "There's No Way to Make Space Travel Good for Planet Earth Right Now". Time. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
  7. ↑ Kiest, Kristina (2022-06-21). "Projected increase in space travel may damage ozone layer". NOAA Research. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
  8. ↑ Gammon, Katharine (2021-07-19). "How the billionaire space race could be one giant leap for pollution". the Guardian. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
  9. ↑ "Space Exploration: Are the Benefits Worth the Ecological Cost? | Vision 2045". vision2045.com. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  10. ↑ McDowell, Edwin (April 19, 1970). "Is Man Justified In Exploring Space When Earthly Problems Beset Him?". The Arizona Republic .
  11. ↑ Reichstein, Andreas. "Space—the Last Cold War Frontier?". Amerikastudien / American Studies. Universitätsverlag Winter: 113–36.
  12. ↑ Barney, Walter (August 11, 1977). "Brown wants California to help develop satellite". The San Francisco Examiner .
  13. ↑ Madrigal, Alexis C. (12 September 2012). "Moondoggle: The Forgotten Opposition to the Apollo Program". The Atlantic. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  14. ↑ Durrani, Haris (19 July 2019). "Is Spaceflight Colonialism?". The Nation. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  15. ↑ "The Political Theology of Space Exploration: Between Anarchy, State, and Utopia". Providence. 25 August 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  16. ↑ "Perspective | How imperialism shaped the race to the moon". Washington Post. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  17. ↑ "The racist language of space exploration". The Outline. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  18. ↑ "We need to change the way we talk about space exploration". Science. 9 November 2018. Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  19. ↑ Smiles, Deondre (2020-10-26). "The Settler Logics of (Outer) Space". www.societyandspace.org. Archived from the original on 2024-09-23. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  20. ↑ "Should We Colonize Space or Decolonize It?". Newsweek. 25 May 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  21. ↑ Zubrin, Robert (2020-11-14). "Wokeists Assault Space Exploration" . National Review. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  22. ↑ Schwartz, James S.J.; Milligan, Tony (2021-02-01). "The Space Review: "Space ethics" according to space ethicists". www.thespacereview.com. Archived from the original on 2024-04-23. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  23. ↑ Bharmal, Zahaan (28 August 2018). "The case against Mars colonisation". the Guardian. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  24. ↑ Novak, Matt (May 15, 2012). "How Space-Age Nostalgia Hobbles Our Future". Slate . Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  25. ↑ Saripalli, Srikanth (September 19, 2013). "To Boldly Go Nowhere, for Now". Slate . Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  26. ↑ Strauss, Mark (April 14, 2011). "Ten Enduring Myths About the U.S. Space Program". Smithsonian . Retrieved June 26, 2024.

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References

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