Why go back to the moon?
Artist's rendering of a moon base operation. Courtesy NASA.
Plans are underway to establish a permanent human presence on the moon by the year 2020.
Earth & Sky spoke with Pete Worden, Director of NASA’s Ames Research Center. We asked him why humanity should return to the moon.
Pete Worden: There are a lot of different reasons to go to the moon. First and foremost, it’s our first step in expanding into the solar system. But along that journey, there’s unbelievable scientific opportunities. The moon itself is a very interesting body. It holds the clues to how the solar system was formed, clues that we can’t find on Earth.
A new manned lunar spacecraft, called Orion, is being developed to fly by the year 2015. The idea is to construct a lunar habitat capable of withstanding the harsh environment and also utilizing natural resources, such as moon rocks with ore for nuclear fuel.
Pete Worden: I think it’s very important to understand that space programs are part of the American psyche. I think that if the space program disappeared tomorrow, each citizen would say they’ve lost something, that America is less than it was. Clearly, human exploration is an interesting and important point. I think most people would agree at some point that humanity is expanding into the solar system, into the universe. This is the first step, and that’s an important aspect of it.
What do you think? Should humanity return to the moon? Tell us, in the comments below.
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Our thanks to:
S. Pete Worden
Director
NASA Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA
Peter’s comment that our setting up a presence on the moon is humanity’s first step expanding into the solar system and that it is an important aspect of that expansion is curiously rooted in a limited view of the human being that contradicts itself by saying we have to get off one celestial body (the earth) and go to another (the moon) to find our origins. We’re on the earth, not the moon, and there is a great deal to learned about that from here that doesn’t rest solely on technology. Still, space exploration is a glamorous pursuit and far better to do it and say we’re doing it because we can rather than that it will tell us more about ourselves than we can learn from where we are. Ancient cultures had a direct relationship with the moon that wasn’t based on what we may consider superstition, rather, it was rooted in their relationship to the soul-spirit nature of the human being and where that being comes from before birth, what happens to it in sleep, and where it goes after death. Pursuing those questions together with what our technology can make available to us will reveal far more about our origins than simply ‘going to the moon.’
There is no cost effective reason to go back to the Moon. Sure it would be interesting, but a lot of things are interesting.
As a next step to Mars, it is not practical. Once you land on the Moon you have to get off the Moon, which would take scarce fuel.
A better intermediate step to Mars would be an orbital space station. Both the Moon and an orbital space station require an enclosed habitat in a hostile environment. But the orbital station would require little fuel to leave it on the journey to Mars.
Nah the moon is a good step kenneth. 88% of earths gravity is affective at the height of the ISS you know. Zero gravity is
an illusion based on your freefall being equivalent to centrifugal force of the Orbit. At the moon gravity is only one sixth (16.6%) of earths gravity. Furthermore, most of the mass of any mars ship would be fuel. You can make rocket fuel from water and sunlight with a little specialist gear. Furthermore, the moon has natural resources like Helium-3 that we might want to use. Frankly if NASA
don’t do it, the chinese probably will by 2025.
I read somewhere else on this web site that population is getting smaller in some countries. Some people think the world’s population will grow and grow, and other people think it will get smaller. If it grows and grows, then we have to expand into the solar system, and the moon is a good first stop. But if population on Earth really is going to get smaller anyway, then why do we have to leave Earth? Why can’t we just stay here and make it a better place to live?
Kenneth, Your thought about the next step to Mars is a common thought about why we are going to the Moon. I don’t think anyone is claiming that the way to Mars is a pit stop on the Moon for fuel and supplies. Rather, the “next step” refers to building the experience and technology base required to get to Mars. Even with the experience we’ve gained with shuttle flights and space station operations, we are not yet technically ready to tackle Mars. We need better space suits, habitats that can handle dust, power systems that are reliable with no support from Earth, food and fuel production facilities, etc. This stuff has to be tested somewhere. I certainly wouldn’t want to be that first astronaust in the way to Mars with a shipload of untested hardware and procedures. This first step is crucial to completing the rest of the path through the Solar System.
I am all for science and the exploration of space…but I have to wonder if maybe we are jumping the gun on thinking it is okay to pour so much of our resources into doing this right now when so many people could benefit from developing self-sufficient technologies here on earth? We already know we can do great things, so why not invest the creativity and ambition into solving problems that actually address {enter your favorite world crisis here} before we go investing in sciences that frankly have a minimal return for the immediate practical needs of humanity. Remember, the end of a matter is much more important than the “origins” of it. Space science is as interesting to me as it is to anyone, but really, first things first; let’s take care of our home, then earn the right to colonize elsewhere.
This Earth is invested by people who enjoy causing caos. I’m referring to the terrorists. They are not here to conquer or claim property just here to cause hate and confusion. Either we drop an “H” bomb to eradicate them or move somewhere else. I choose the latter. We do have the free agency to choose.
Do we really think we can move somewhere else w/o constant dependence upon apparatus? It is true we cannot prove there isn’t another earth out there…but odds are not good given the extremely fine margin of parameters making our own habitat possible. Have you ever tried staying inside for months on end? Go through a Minnesota winter and you will not even experience a tiny bit of the cabin fever you would have living in an enclosed colony. This whole idea of expanding into the universe is really an instance of science for sciences’ sake, but not mankind’s sake. I for one hope that science is not becoming an infallible religion or mindset which cannot be swayed or influenced; I hope it becomes a regulated tool for constructive solutions to serve all of mankind, not just an elite glory-seeking few. As for leaving the bad people behind, I believe human nature travels with humans, so you can’t really ever leave the “bad” people because they will surface everywhere humans reproduce. I am not claiming to have all of the answers, but if we think about it, it should be easy to see what the answers are not. I vote to postpone space science and live responsibly for a while.
The wonder of going to the moon is irrepressible, I suppose. We probably have to go there. Dr. Stephen W. Hawking has made clear to us that we could need to leave the Earth precisely because the current course of the predominant culture overspreading our planetary home will likely diminish the capacity of Earth to provide a fit place for human habitation.
Hopefully, Dr. Hawking will be able to fulfill his personal plans to venture into space soon, thanks to Sir Richard Branscom or perhaps another billionaire who will front the money for the trip. Who knows, travel to other planets, the moon, the stars, et cetera may turn out to be the path humankind takes to safeguard the survival of the human species.
For myself, I have hopes humankind will respond ably to the looming global challenges that present themselves to our species here on this good Earth by saving biodiversity from extinction, protecting the environment from irreversible degradation and preserving the integrity of Earth from overwhelming human influence in Century XXI. It is by following this path, NOT the course of endless business-as-usual economic growth, that the human species stands a good chance of most likely assuring its own health, wellbeing, existence and other life as we know it.
Afterall, we have evolved on this planet. Based upon the best available scientific evidence, can you think of another place in the Universe where we are likely to flourish as we do on Earth?
I vote with fuller to work diligently now to “live responsibly for a while” longer on the planet God has blessed us to inhabit.
Starting a moon base is a first step to getting out to other planets. There the science of living in a harsh environment can be perfected. Also we are not yet entirely sure of what lies beneath the surface of the moon. Who knows what we might find. Our resources on earth are limited, at some point we need to find other places to ‘farm.’
As for the population of earth becoming smaller, that is a untrue statement. People are having less children on average, especially in Europe, where the 50+ population will soon be the largest population. But the amount of people on Earth is still growing, just not as fast as it was during the 1960s.
As for spending too much money, NASA and other companies already spend billions, why not direct to an area of more popular interest? Especially to an area where there is possible profit. The idea of mining the moon, Mars, and asteroids is becoming more possible every year.
Plus I want my retirement present to be a cruise off planet. Little zero g paintball anybody? :)
I definetly think we should go to the Moon , especially when its kinda hard to believe they actually made it the first time ,some say it was a hoax! And i sorta believe it is too now. One reason being.. why it would take so long to go back . I think it was a power trip. And if it wasnt go back and prove it ! We got a space station when we could’ve been had a Moon station..lol. I think Mankind is in danger , Humanity is in danger . I give the planet 50 more years and it may be unrecognizeable . Global Warming and the fact it seems that Earth is slightly move off coarse in orbit . The Sun is reaching diffrent parts of the planet ,some more than others . We are only 30% of land . Water made us and Water will destroy us . If not for the Moon Impact we would not have been here in the 1st place. Enough.lol
Seems like some people want to go to the Moon, some don’t. Some think it’s cost-effective now, some don’t. I suggest that those who want to go to the Moon now get together and voluntarily pool their resources for that purpose. But I object to having the IRS extract funds for that purpose coercively from myself and others. NASA is largely a porkbarrel project, a leftover dinosaur from the Cold War. I’m not impressed by vacuous babble about how we have to spend billions on manned space flight because it’s “in our psyche.” Let Mr. Worden look after his psyche, I’ll look after mine. In response to Joe Bloggs, it would be a pity for the Chinese if their government squanders their meagre wealth on rockets to the Moon, but that’s their problem, not ours.
The problem as I see it is that we have a lot of worthwhile things to do in space. Since Mike Griffin took over as NASA Administrator, however, the moon has become the main focus, and other worthwhile activities have fallen by the wayside from lack of funding. This is a repeat of the 1970s Shuttle experience; the Shuttle was inadequately funded, yet still managed to gut planetary exploration. We launched no U.S. planetary exploration missions from 1978 to 1989.
There is no good reason to go to the moon to get to Mars. Conditions on the two worlds and the demands they make on astronauts and their spacecraft are completely different. I think that the interest in the moon is based primarily in a misunderstanding of how space works. The moon is not on the way to Mars in terms of the energy needed to reach Mars.
When I was still in high school, I set my alarm and got up at 3 a.m. pacific time in order to watch the launch of Apollo 8. It was the first time I had seen the launch of a Saturn 5 rocket. The image has stayed with me all these years. Mankind, if he is to reach maturity, MUST reach for the stars. The moon is the first of many such steps we must take in order to reach that goal. To quote the immortal Robert A. Heinlein. “Earth is much too small a basket for mankind to keep all its eggs in.”
I am very much in favor of establishing a manned base on the Moon. The scientific research that could be performed would be very beneficial. The technological developments which would be spun-off would more that justify the expense. The space race has kept the USA ahead of the world, so let’s keep going.
When I was younger, I was gung-ho for space. Now, in my 50s, not so much. This is an interesting discussion. There’s another good on in EarthSky Blogs under David Portree’s Saving Spaceflight post. Lindsay, who is 22, commented that people in her generation don’t believe a human presence in space is inevitable …
Very different from people my age! Maybe it was just my perspective as a long-time sci-fi fan, but I truly believed humans were going to space … within my lifetime.
Now I’m not sure we’re meant to go …
I think this is a great step for men. If this succeeds imagine the possibilities of where we could go next. This could open a new door into space a key to unlocking many mysteries of space; such, as are there other terrestrials in these galaxies? Are we just a few galaxies within thousand of billion of more galaxies? This could help further civilization. Say we need to travel because the sun is about to blow up, we would have the technology to head to another solar system and inhabit it because we would have already know about it.
Referencing Pete Worden’s comment that “if the space program disappeared tomorrow, each citizen would say they’ve lost something, that America is less than it was.” Pete Worden doesn’t speak for “each” citizen. I believe this is a criminal waste of money (and don’t get me started on the invasion of Iraq). America would not be less than it was if it decided to think and act globally (and no further) and put this money to better uses both at home and abroad. America could become more than it ever dreamed possible in its narrow, self-interested little mind.
How about 1st a space station that is an a “good” orbit. The ISS occupies a far from “Good” orbit at 51.6 degrees. Can’t do much “Good” science at that angle. No wonder our ISS partners really don’t want to go there. The good part of it is that leaves the Moon and beyond open. I only hope Biglow Airspace put their station in a “Good” orbit.
Of course we should go back to the moon. Do you know that there are people who still believe that we never went in the first place, that it was just a publicity charade to one-up the Russians? Not old people like me but people in their 20s and 30s, people with college educations.
Besides, we must eventually leave this planet if the human race is to survive. We have a long way to go. We can and should start now. It’s a very small step but it needs to be taken. I seriously thought that we’d be on Mars by now. Either the skeptics are right and we never did go to the moon or we’ve made a serious mistake of historic consequence.
To reply that People from Earth Never went to the Moon is crazy. The Earth-Moon distance can be determined pretty accurately because the Astronauts that walked on the moon left a very special mirror on the Moon.
Galactic travel is fascinating no doubt, but I reject the the thrust of the argument that asserts that space exploration is part of the American identity. Further, given the state of our own planet, I question the notion that space travel is somehow going to benefit mankind. We don’t even know how to take care of our own planet. It is arrogance to think that we will do anything other than pollute space whilst we “explore” it.
The taxes of us earthlings would be better spent on Earth.
I say its agood idea. Maybe someday I will be able to travel to the moon as a tourist.
I came across the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal when I was searching the internet about why the Apollo missions came to an end so quickly. One of the main reasons was political interest and government funding for the continuation of the program. We reached our goal, so there was no interest in furthering the very expensive program. I understand that we have many, many needs to meet with our government funds here on Earth. When people are starving in underdeveloped countries, civil wars are continuing to disrupt many lives throughout the world and diseases are still rampant, it seems selfish for us to allocate billions of dollars to our space program. What is sad to me is that if we as a species could get over fighting and work together, we would have so much time and resources to explore our universe. Imagine a world without war. How much money would we save? That money or at least a portion of it could definitely fund a mission to the Moon and Mars. I wish we could take our defense money and spend it on the space program. While I was reading through the lunar surface jounral, I came across this quote, “...there are few other things now within human reach that are quite so fascinating.” This rings true to me. What else is as fascinating as finding out more about our universe? Why we are here? What else is out there to be discovered? I grew up in Houston, TX so I had the priveledge to go to NASA often for school field trips. I remember signing my name in a big book that was reserved on a special stand for kids who wanted to become astronauts. I will never forget that day because it has driven me to apply to the program this year. We need the program and missions to the moon to instill excitement, interest and passion for life and to promote peace to our world. Yes, peace. If everyone really understood where we stand in our universe, how insignificant we really are and how vast a universe we live in, I doubt we would be squabbling over oil and killing one another. This is my hope for humanity.
Great question, except that it implies that we are going to do it. I’m glad someone is asking.
We are basically in an emergency situation here on Earth and we need to make the health of this planet the top priority.
I like the moon the way it is. A few foot prints is enough. Maybe its time to declare the moon and Mars international Peace Parks .
And Mary Adams’ observation is great, refering to the fact that we are already IN space.
I’m also in the camp of Kenneth, Fuller, Steven, Alan, Bonnie and Nick.
Lets spend our time and energy taking care of this planet, our home.
I thought the guy that said everyone in America considers space exploration to be an American goal was speaking for himself. He was not speaking for me or any of my children, whom are all teenagers. They are more concerned about technology to care for the planet earth. How presumptious to say everyone in America. Sounds like our President, out of touch with “everyone in America” Hello, is anyone out there listening?
Hello Zena, I’m listening … and I’m glad you expressed this feeling. When I was your kids’ ages, I was a complete space nut and felt it was inevitable that we humans would go to space, ultimately live on other planets. Now I’m not so sure. There are many ways to explore. I’d like to see our country explore taking care of its children (health care!), finding sustainable building solutions to replace bridges, roads, dams and other aging infrastructure on which all of us citizens rely … and so on. I agree with you and your children, and others who have commented here. Earth first.
Deborah
We cannot even live peacefully with each other on our own home planet, and we are struggling to live in harmony with the Earth. Why, therefore, would we waste the financial and human resources to live on other planets when we have a long way to go to live in peace with each other and Mother Nature here on earth? Take all the money we are wasting on the space program, and invest it in teaching children around the world to read if you really want to advance mankind.
I beleve that it would be a good idea to go and settle the moon.
All this talk about a next step to Mars and colonizing the Moon are really secondary and tertiary reasons for going back to the Moon. The main reason is to set up a dominance on the Moon to prevent another country from setting up a military base that would threaten the sovereignty of the United States. It’s what you might call preventive maintenance. No matter how peaceful it starts out, it will end up a military matter sooner or later. It may as well be sooner and the United States doing it first.
Each of the posts above contain a portion of the truth. I too believe that the USA returning to the moon is a strategic maneuver for both dominance, and to get a start on learning what we the Moon can provide in regards to the materials necessary for a sustained occupation. I also believe there is some science to be learned, since the effects of long term exposure to space beyond Earth’s protective magnetic field has yet to be really tested.
In regards to the ISS being a launching platform for deep space flights to Mars, The ISS is better suited to study the Earth. It is not necessary as a stopping point for trips to the Moon or beyond, unless used solely as a pitstop for the transfer of needed supplies. A robot ship would serve that same purpose more efficiently. Minimal amounts of fuel are required to continue to the Moon as used to dock with the ISS. A few more days and a landing vehicle are the only additions to traveling to the Moon. In regards to war eventually erupting on the Moon, as long as the countries who choose to occupy the Moon stay clear of each other, peace should last for 50 years or so. By then, it will suffer from the same overcrowding and the typical bubbles that have burst here will burst there and trouble will ensue.
In a perfect world I do wish that space exploration was for the purpose of acquiring the scientific knowledge necessary to adventure farther and farther into space. Space Programs do require an enormous amount of funding, and soon the discoveries and science of space exploration will provide the self-sustaining source of funding necessary to continue.
I know that there are starving countries and starving people within otherwise healthy countries, but stopping all forward progress to save the planet with our present politics would suspend all space programs indefinitely.
I know that terrorists would rather us focus on them and their demands, but if we turn our efforts strictly to cater to them, or try to squelch their voice, again, we would focus for eternity trying to please cultures who do not want that pleasure.
I think that presently we are progressing slower than what we could in light of the worlds problems. In other words, our addressing the worlds problems is slowing down the pace of furthering our exploration of the Moon and beyond.
when I was a child, I wanted more than anything to be a part of the space program; unfortunately the timing of my birth did not allow for that possibility. There is so much to be learned from even a small colonization toehold on the moon. Not only can that be a stepping-off point to further exploration, it gives us the opportunity to see how human beings will adapt to living on the surface of planets/moons other than Terra Firma. It is vital in my opinion that we take this next step, along with attempting to repair the damage we have done to our own world in order to ensure the survival of humanity—not just our children and grtandchildren—but theirs as well.