To take only one, imagine where we would be without applications satellites. Space has had more tangible impacts on society. "The impact of seeing the Earth from space focused our energies on the home planet in unprecedented ways, dramatically affecting our relationship to the natural world and our appreciation of the greater community of mankind, and prompting a revolution in our understanding of the Earth as a living system," she wrote.īenjamin thinks it is no coincidence that the first Earth Day on April 20, 1970, occurred in the midst of the Apollo program or that one of the astronauts developed a new school of spiritualism or that people "should be drawn to an innovative model for the domestic economy sprung free from the American space program by NASA administrator James Webb." Exploration shapes world views and changes cultures in unexpected ways, and so does lack of exploration. In her new book Rocket Dreams: How the Space Age Shaped Our Vision of a World Beyond, Marina Benjamin argues that space exploration has shaped our worldviews in more ways than one. With that search for life on new worlds, planetary protection protocols have been put in place, both for our own planet and others.Ĭontact with intelligent extraterrestrials beyond the solar system will remain a more remote possibility, and when and if it happens we should learn from the history of culture contacts on Earth.īut the immediate impact of the Space Age is far more diverse than the ultimate discovery of life in space. In the Age of Space, the search for microbial life has been a main driver of space exploration, in particular with regard to Mars, but also now extended to more exotic environments like the Jovian moon Europa. Shipboard observers often carefully noted exotic plants and animals seen during the course of their voyages, and the ultimate experience was contact with exotic humans. One feature unlikely to be paralleled with the Age of Discovery, at least in the near future, is contact with other cultures. From left to right: Mission Specialists(MS) Richard J. Image above: Three crewmembers of mission STS-49 hold onto the 4.5 ton International Telecommunications Organization Satellite (INTELSAT) VI after a six- handed "capture" was made minutes earlier during the mission's third extravehicular activity (EVA). All are open to analysis, and as we approach the fiftieth anniversary of the Age of Space, we should examine, with historical objectivity, precisely what the impact of the Age of Space has been. They occur on many levels: commercial applications, education and inspiration to youth, applications satellites, scientific benefits, and philosophical implications. The consequences of space exploration as already undertaken stand before us for examination. Others have pointed out that the Age of Discovery was only a mixed blessing, especially when it came to culture contact. Earlier essays have already analyzed in broad terms some of the potential consequences of not exploring, especially the lack of creativity that an inward-looking society may bring, by analogy with Ming China. Dick.Īs controversies swirl about funding, resources, motives and methods for spaceflight, it is well to consider the consequences of exploring space – and of choosing not to do so. Editor's Note: This is the ninth in a series of essays on exploration by NASA's Chief Historian, Steven J.
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