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Science Hawking envisions Columbus like exploration of space
Science Hawking envisions Columbus like exploration of space | Hawking envisions Columbus like exploration of space |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Tuesday, 22 April 2008 | |
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 Science DiscussionsOn Monday, April 21, 2008, while at Georgetown University (Washington D.C.), Hawking compared the beginning of the twenty-first century with the end of the fifteenth century. Stephen Hawking stated, “In a way, the situation is like Europe before 1492. People might well have argued that it was a waste of money to send Columbus on a wild goose chase." He added, "Yet the discovery of the new world made profound difference to the old .... Spreading out into space will have an even greater effect. It will completely change the future of the human race and maybe determine whether we have any future at all.” In his speech Hawking talked about a long-term space exploration project that would include building a manned base on the Moon within thirty years, and devising a new propulsion system to explore outside the Earth’s solar system. Specifically, he stated, “We cannot envision visiting them with current technology, but we should make interstellar travel a long-term aim. By long term, I mean over the next 200 to 500 years." Hawking called for a large investment of time and energy to establish human bases on the Moon and Mars—even suggesting that the world’s developed countries, through their space agencies, together should spend each year about ten times of NASA’s current annual budget on the endeavor. He suggested that this amount would be approximately 0.25% of the world’s financial worth. Specifically, for the United States, Hawking suggested: "A goal of a base on the Moon by 2020 and of a manned landing on Mars by 2025 would reignite the space programme and give it a sense of purpose in the same way that President Kennedy's Moon target did in the 1960s." Hawking stated, "It [the exploration of space] will not solve any of our immediate problems on planet earth, but it will give us a new perspective on them and ... Hopefully, it will unite us to face a common challenge." He added, "Going into space will not be cheap, but it will take only a small portion of world resources.” Hawking concluded by suggesting manned missions are better than unmanned missions because: "Robotic missions are much cheaper and may provide more scientific information, but they don't catch the public imagination in the same way, and they don't spread the human race into space, which I'm arguing should be our long-term strategy. If the human race is to continue for another million years, we will have to boldly go where no one has gone before." Stephen Hawking also commented on intelligent life on Earth and elsewhere in the Universe. Please read on. |
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