NASA still relevant after all these years

By Eric Lorenz
Editor-in-Chief

Star light, star bright,
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might,
Have the wish I wish tonight.

At one time, the world was fascinated by the wonders that outer space held. Kids grew up wanting to be astronauts who flew on rocket ships and discovered faraway planets. Grown-up audiences marveled in wonder as Neil Armstrong took a giant leap for mankind. And through it all, no one really questioned whether it was a waste of money to fund a government organization whose founding principle was to explore what lies beyond our sphere.

But nowadays, those questions have begun to surface. As the country faces huge budget concerns and an economy in need of a bailout in the form of hundreds of billions of dollars, federal number crunchers will no doubt be looking for any corner to cut. And when corners need to be cut, those who aren’t deemed crucial are the first to get snipped.

NASA does not oversee the economy. Nor does NASA develop next-generation weapons systems for the military. What NASA does rarely makes the front pages of the newspaper anymore save for a snippet about the Phoenix Mars Lander back in May. That is, unless a mission goes awry. Then NASA is plastered all over the front page.

In other words, NASA’s contributions are not seen as crucial to the country, and if its budget was stripped away entirely, not many people would even realize it. That makes it a prime target for budget cuts.

In fact, NASA’s budget has been diminished significantly over the years. In 1965, NASA’s budget (adjusted for inflation) was $33.514 billion. By comparison, NASA’s projected 2009 budget is just $17.614 billion. Since its formation in 1958, less has been spent to fund NASA over its entire history ($592.38 billion) than has been spent fighting the Afghanistan and Iraq wars combined ($604 billion approx).

But despite the budget cuts and low visibility, NASA continues to contribute much more than meets the eye.

For one, NASA funds the Near-Earth Object Program which tracks asteroids and other celestial bodies that either do or may one day cross into Earth’s orbit. These are the people who are tracking those massive asteroids, the ones seen in the movies. These are also the people who, God forbid one should set its sights on Earth, will be tasked with saving mankind. To me that sounds like a worthwhile investment.

NASA has also contributed much to our modern world. While NASA may not have invented Velcro as many believe, it did invent the technologies behind MRIs, CAT scans, kidney dialysis, freeze-dried food and cordless power tools.

But looking beyond the space shuttle or the International Space Station, NASA’s greatest achievement has been preserving an interest in science and exploration for generations. After all, it’s pretty difficult not to be left in awe after seeing an image of the Pillars of Creation sent to Earth by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. If something as stunning as that can exist in the universe, then who knows what else may still lie out there, just waiting to be discovered.

But if NASA fades into the sunset as a result of the Fed’s belt-tightening, then this will all end. The magic, the wonder, all of it. The final frontier will remain untamed. Worst of all, future generations will be deprived of what we have all taken for granted for 50 years.

NASA has earned our respect and the benefit of the doubt. Just because it doesn’t make the papers every day doesn’t mean that it’s not important. NASA is important and should not be unfairly penalized due to shortcomings in the economic sector.

So the next time you look up at the full moon in the night sky or stare in wide-eyed wonderment at the stars twinkling in the distance, just think of what we would miss if it weren’t for a few dedicated individuals who watch for us.

Because turning our gaze away from the heavens completely would be a tremendous loss for mankind.