2006-09-25 12:30:29 · 11 answers · asked by caged_bird88 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
WOW, I really appreciate your help!
2006-09-25 12:36:20 · update #1
1) The safety issue: our atmosphere & the magnetic field of the earth protect us from a great deal of radiation which when leaving that protective envelope space travelers are heavily exposed to & need heavier shielding than so far has been given since missions have been mostly fairly short.
2) The economics issue; up until now space travel has been a government-funded affair. Like libraries which contribute a great deal to collective education & don't cost much but also are not as fiercely defended by lobbyists either, NASA has been a fairly easy target for cost cutting. (this is changing as space travel becomes privatized)
3) The domestic politics: very soon now, our government will no longer be able to hide the fact that their are no provisions to pay for the staggering liabilities of the entitlement programs, & there won't be much federal money for anything else either.
4)The Foreign politics: space travel is a mark of national prestige. There was little that the moon-faring astronauts did that robots could not have done & for cheaper, but it was the one-upmanship over the USSR at the time that was a big deal.
5) The What's in it for me? issue: For the expense & risk (which robots are much cheaper & can do more & more things very well without eating, breathing or having to return) the question comes up : what return can we expect for this investment?
It's a reasonable, even necessary question.
What do you think ?
;-)
2006-09-25 13:00:08 · answer #1 · answered by WikiJo 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A few things come to mind
1- To travel to other galaxies with our rockets would take years to get there. Years to get back. Someone that is 30-40 years old might be over 100 if they are still living when it gets back.
2- With the Galaxies moving like our solar system does. Could you imagine throwing a dart from a million to a trillion miles away and trying to hit the bulls eye ( Earth ). Chances are you might never find this galaxy again.
3-Fuel could be a problem solved by nuclear engine say. Oxygen can be made. But, hoe much food can be stored on a ship that could be 10 - 20 years long.
So, I would say the biggest problem would be FOOD. Otherwise I think everything else could be calculated out somehow.
2006-09-25 23:55:17 · answer #2 · answered by road126runnr 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well....
the main issues are pretty much the same as it would be on earth. since you are taking an earth adapted organism into space, you'd have to simulate the same type environment in space as found on earth. Your environment would have to be able to produce in one form or another the following basic materials.
Oxygen. oxygen is critical..you generally live about 4 minutes with out it. But its producing oxygen in space that's critical. and it would have to be at a pressure that would allow it to enter the lungs. And the excess carbon dioxide exhaled to be cleaned from it. all these items would be factors.
water. water is critical. you live about two days without it. fortunately, water can be cleaned and returned to the same drinkable state provided you have enough energy.
food. food is critical. you live about 2 weeks without food. but for long voyages, you would either have to grow it, or concentrate it in such a form as to be able to store enough of it to meet the needs of the journey.
Gravity. Its critical. The human body needs some stress to enable it to function correctly. Bones actually lose mass and structure over long periods in a weightless environment. Muscles, if not challenged, tend to lose strength.
Activity. humans need to be productive or stimulated to prevent boredom. Travel through space can be long, and with nothing productive to do, well....
a source of U.V. we get quite a few things from sunlight. some of our most vital vitamins come from the interaction of the skin with U.V. light. I guess you could store them in some form, but why waste the space...
course, you could eliminate a lot of problems by putting the humans all to sleep and just let the machines get them from point a to point b...but you had better build a good machine to do it...
so many different problems. some have simple solutions, some don't. I guess for long trips..you'd make the ship into a reasonable replica of a small world.
just my slant on it.
2006-09-26 03:54:59 · answer #3 · answered by centurion613 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The main issues currently with Space exploration is we are NOT decently funded, we are currently have limited knowledge on whats out there and we just currently don't have the technology to encounter every posible scenario if we do go for space exploration.
2006-09-25 19:33:26 · answer #4 · answered by nileri_1 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I've been reading "The Illustrated Man" by Ray Bradbury, it touches on how men(the Human race) might not be made for space travel. I mean, if it is unbearable to be have way across the world how "unbearable" would it be to be half way to Pluto. I think that we need to develop a good long distance communication technique.
2006-09-25 23:50:54 · answer #5 · answered by esage321 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A low cost way to get into orbit is number 1
The 'beanstalk' way has the best promise. Getting a space elevator built.
2006-09-25 19:32:51 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
you have to think about cosmic rays which are deadly to humans, space dust which could clog exhaust ports, and rocks that could pierce through the hulls of ships, we would have to come up with a type of energy shielding, and we still haven't found a renewable energy source to power the ships
2006-09-27 20:05:36 · answer #7 · answered by charles w 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
List:
Money
Safety
Technology
Also, the lack of information about anything with in a one-planet radius.
2006-09-25 19:34:52 · answer #8 · answered by Tanjoubi 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
How to get back to earth, whether it's possible, blah blah blah. Haven't you ever heard of the Apollo Moon Hoax? Not that I believe it...
2006-09-25 19:40:19 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Ther expense.
2006-09-25 19:32:22 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋