There are lessons to be learned from space exploration, but we are slow learners.
Since Mariner IV, we have known the Earth is the only known habitable planet, but there is still foolish talk of expanding the human tragedy to Mars.
From space we watch the polar caps shrink, the ocean and atomospheric temperatures rise, and greenhouse gases build, yet we do little to curtail the obvious human contributions to this iffy, untested global experiment.
Finally, and most curiously, through our exploration with Hubble, WMAP, and Newton telescopes, and in conjunction with earth-based radio data, we know the universe is much too large and too old for the BB model: None of the predictions have panned out. We know Cassini is measuring thermal properties of the moons of Saturn that are inconsistent with the current solar system model, and we found dust, not ice, in the deep impact encounter. We have learned the Sun has electro-magnetic properties never fathomed in theory, and even lightning can produce gamma rays. Our science is only as good as our ability to recognize these inconsistencies for what they are: Clues that we don't have a clue.
There is much to learn, so much challenging every aspect of our future, including the most basic premises of current physical theory. Exploring space provides answers.
Question.
Reply With Quote
