The Success of Humanity Depends Upon Manned Exploration of Space

When we look at the history of humanity, exploration stands out as a crucially influential factor on cultural and technological development. Our urge to explore is a tangible manifestation of the spirit of curiosity with which we endeavour. As inferred in the popular phrase, “Curiosity killed the cat,” our tendencies to explore and inquire can lead to considerable risk, but an element of risk is accepted to a greater or lesser degree in all our activities; generally, greater risks lead to a potentially greater reward, and our historical records are replete with the risks our predecessors have taken to achieve great successes in their lifetimes. As a useful indicator of our success, and with a deserved measure of self-congratulation, we should note that we have the largest population of any mammal on Earth, and that our habitats are the most wide-ranging. Human ingenuity has allowed members of our species to prosper in environments that could be considered normally hostile to human life; we have developed means to modify our environments, localise needed resources, and to carry our habitable environments with us, whether by simple clothing and climate control, or by more sophisticated means, such as deep sea exploration vehicles or spacecraft and stations. The famous twentieth century inventor, R. Buckminster Fuller, identified the process of ‘ephemeralisation,’ by which humans ingeniously solve and resolve the problems and limitations confronting our development, repeatedly improving and building upon what we have already established. His was a hope-filled perception of the future of our species, and a life dedicated to the universal advancement of human prosperity.