What is space research?

Space research refers to scientific studies carried out using scientific equipment in outer
space. It consists of the use of space technology for a broad spectrum of research
disciplines including Earth science, materials science, biology, medicine and physics.

Ethical/Moral concerns regarding space research

Point In the course of space research, scientists may violate the rights of
humans and animals, sparking ethical and moral concerns.

Elaboration The journey to space is a dangerous one, but countries and space
agencies, in a bid to achieve breakthroughs in space exploration, may
ignore the numerous safety concerns and send not only animals but also
human astronauts to space to achieve the goal. Some of the potential
safety hazards are well-documented, such as the exposure to radiation
and the increased likelihood of brain diseases among many others, but
there are still potential life-threatening health threats that have yet to be
identified. The expedition of humans into space is hence a reasonable
ethical concern, and more so for animals who are sent there against their
own will.

Examples This is supported by a panel of scientists from the National Academy of

Sciences which concluded in 2014 that, after a study of long-duration
space travel, any deep space mission will be too dangerous, based on
NASA's minimum safety requirements. They hence urged their fellow
researchers in NASA to consider ethics while designing standards for
future long missions, such as giving astronauts the choice to reject a
space travel and taking full responsibility for their safety, both during
missions and for the rest of their lives. There are fewer restrictions
regarding animals however, with animals taking the roles of astronauts
since the 1940s, but it was only in 2007 that the first animal managed to
survive exposure to space. Many of them have lost their lives in the
process, with the 5 geckos that froze to death while aboard the Foton-
M4 Russian Satellite in 2014 being just 5 of a long list of victims of
space research.

Link Given the inevitable need to send animals and humans into space to
garner more information about space and the inexorable risks that
accompany it, violation of rights, particularly that of animals, are bound
to occur. Hence, space research should be toned down as a form of
respect to the human astronauts and animals that are sent into space.
Other examples:
1) As of December 2015, 22 crew members have died in accidents aboard spacecraft.
Over 100 others have died in accidents during activity directly related to spaceflight or
testing.
2) 31 October 2014:SpaceShipTwoVSS Enterprise powered drop-test.Copilot error:
premature deployment of "feathering" descent air-braking system caused disintegration of
vehicle in flight; pilot survived, copilot died
3) 2003: STS-107Space Shuttle Columbia : Damaged wing on space shuttle resulted in
penetration of hot atmospheric gases during re-entry, leading to structural failure of wing,
loss of control and disintegration of orbiter
4) Animals have also been sent on the death mission,On 3 November 1957, the second-
ever orbiting spacecraft carried the first animal into orbit, the dog Laika, launched aboard
the Soviet Sputnik 2 spacecraft .Laika died during the flight, as was intended because the
technology to return from orbit had not yet been developed.
5) On 31 December 2012, a NASA-supported study reported that spaceflight may harm
the brain of astronauts and accelerate the onset of Alzheimer's disease.
6) One of the most tragic accidents associated with the American space program is the
explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. On January 28, 1986 the space shuttle
exploded just 73 seconds into its flight, killing the crew of seven on board.
7) The near absence of gravity and the presence of high-energy ionizing cosmic ray
(HZE) nuclei pose astronauts health in danger. Medical observations have shown that
exposure to zero gravity for a prolonged period of time has a serious consequence on
astronauts bone and muscle physiology as well as cardiovascular system.
Cost of Space Research (Economics)

Point One of the prominent arguments put forth by opponents of state-funded

space research is the high cost required to finance the programmes.

Elaboration Space research often demands a lot of money and resources to develop
new high-end technologies such as satellites, used to monitor and
capture images of different planets. Even though these programmes are
usually funded with the taxes paid by the general public, they do not
benefit from it as the advances of space research are irrelevant to the life
of many.

Furthermore, the needs of humanity should always be prioritised as

compared to satisfying our curiosity about space. Resources can be
better allocated to resolve the problems mankind are currently facing in
our own world, allowing humans to pursue a higher standard of living.
The enormous amount of money dedicated to space research should be
used for more pressing issues which require our attention, such as
poverty, education, refugee crisis etc. and should not be pursued until we
can resolve these issues of greater importance.
Examples NASAs Space Shuttle Program was estimated to have cost nearly
US$200 Billion, with the average cost per launch being US$1.5 Billion.
Meanwhile, other space agencies such as the European Space Agency
spent 2.98 Billion Euro.

While it is debatable whether US and EU should pursue space research

as they are comparatively wealthier, developing countries like India and
China should focus on improving the quality of life of their citizens. The
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) sent a non-crewed probe to
the moon, known as Chandrayaan-1 in 2008 and launched an orbital
mission to Mars in 2013, with successful Mars orbit achieved in 2014.
This was pulled off with a budget of about $72 million, for the satellite
itself and the entire ground tracking and communication infrastructure
needed here on Earth. This was pursued despite the 276 million Indian
living under the poverty line of $1.25 per day.

Link Therefore, space research programmes generally requires large amount

of money, while being unable to bring about tangible benefits to the
public and should not be pursued unless the country is able to resolve
other more pressing social issues which have a more direct impact on
their citizens.
Pollution of Space (Environmental)
Point Sending spacecraft into space in the name of space research
may also culminate in pollution of space, which will not only
make space a dirtier place but will lead to unintended
accidents.
Explanation/Elaboratio When a space satellite is sent into space, some of its parts
n such as the Inertial Upper Stage will disintegrate into
fragments which will circulate around space. Dead spacecraft
from failed missions as well as pollution from the astronauts
are also sources of the degradation of the space environment.
The debris left behind may potentially cause accidents when
other satellites collide with it, resulting in potential deaths and
the production of even more debris. Most importantly, large
debris from space and reach the Earth intact, again posing a
threat to the human population.
Examples For example, the debris left behind from the deactivated
Kosmos 2251 weighing 950kg collided with an operational
560 kg Iridium 33, culminating in the destruction of both
satellites and production of a large amount of debris. Debris
left behind by spacecraft together with collisions likely
contributed to NASA reporting that an average of one
catalogued piece of debris has fallen back to Earth each day
for the past 50 years. Fortunately, despite their size, there has
been no significant property damage from the debris, but
given the findings, this is just a case of an accident waiting to
happen.

Link Hence, the pollution of space is indeed a serious problem in

terms of the threat it poses to the human population and other
aircrafts and with the absence of solutions to clean up the
mess left in space, space research should be discouraged to
prevent the environmental degradation of space.

Other examples:
1) On 27 March 2007, airborne debris from a Russian spy satellite was seen by the pilot
of a LAN Airlines Airbus A340 carrying 270 passengers whilst flying over the Pacific
Ocean between Santiago and Auckland.[90] The pilot estimated that the debris was within
8 kilometres (5.0 mi) of the aircraft, and he heard a sonic boom as it passed.
2) Another Briz-M broke up on 16 October 2012 after a failed 6 August Proton-M launch.
The amount and size of the debris was unknown.[42] A Long March 7 rocket booster
created a fireball visible from portions of Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Idaho and California
on the evening of July 27, 2016; its disintegration was widely reported on social media.\

3)n February 2015, the USAF Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Flight 13
(DMSP-F13) exploded on orbit, creating at least 149 debris objects, which were expected
to remain in orbit for decades.

Pollution of Space (Religious)

Point Space research and the idea of space travel to discover other
alien lifeforms also goes directly against certain religious
beliefs, in the face of all applicable science. It is hence
harmful as it can result in dissent due to differing opinions,
threatening social harmony.
Explanation/Elaboratio Certain religious traditions do influence attitudes toward
n questions on space knowledge, policy support and the benefits
of space research and exploration.

Examples According to research by University of Dayton Political

Science Assistant Professor Joshua Ambrosius on religious
belief and attitudes toward space, Evangelical Protestants,
who account for one-quarter of the United States population,
are the least knowledgeable, interested and supportive of
space research.

Evangelicals have been hesitant to recognise the discoveries

of modern science from evolutionary origins to climate
change, Ambrosius said. The data show that this overall
attitude extends into space. Ambrosius used data from the
General Social Survey and three Pew surveys to compare
knowledge, interest and support for space research among
different groups of people.

This result could be due to the fact that the act of discovering
or exploring the expanse of the universe goes against the
belief of Evangelicals that there is only one world present as
created by God.
Link This lack of unanimous support for space research might
 result in dissidence and even infighting within a country,
affecting society and its progress.

Reference:
1. https://www.udayton.edu/news/articles/2014/11/church_and_space.php
 Economic benefits regarding space exploration
Point Another benefit of the space program would be its ability to generate
revenue for both the government and private corporations.
Elaboration For the government, the space program can help bring in tons of
investments into the massive projects each time. Moreover, the space
program can help create many jobs due to the large amount of people,
from researchers to engineers that are required to ensure that every
aspect is covered and checked for from the planning to the launch.
Private corporations are also able to utilise the space program for their
own commercial benefits. This may include the initialising of space
tours and charging people for taking a trip with astronauts into outer
space.

Examples In 2012, SpaceXs Dragon spacecraft made history by being the first
commercial spacecraft to deliver cargo to the International Space Station
and safely return cargo to Earth. Under a new agreement with NASA,
SpaceX is now making the necessary refinements to allow the Dragon
Spacecraft to fly crew as well. Test flights are expected to start in 2018.
With these new developments, the prospect of space tours and
commercial space flights to orbit and even the International Space
Station is becoming more tangible. This allows the possibility of job
creation to crew and organise these flights, while generating revenue
from the tickets to these flights, therefore giving the US economy the
boost it needs to kick-start itself following the recent economic
recessions and

Link Therefore, although the true profit generating potential that the space
program has though has yet to be realised, speculation based on its
current success with job creation can be a good indicator of its economic
benefit.

Other example:
1) In 2012, NASA administrator Charles Bolden published a blog post about the Curiosity
Mars rover landing, which was picked up by the White House website. Its also
important to remember that the $2.5 billion investment made in this project was not spent
on Mars, but right here on Earth, supporting more than 7,000 jobs in at least 31 states,
he wrote
 Social benefits regarding space research
Point Scientists are always developing new technology for the space program
however these technology would make its way into society due to their
immense benefit for our world.

Elaboration Our increasing knowledge of space and the universe has led us to
increase our demands for space exploration and space research in
general as we want to know more about space and our galaxy. This thus
needs to be coupled with newer and more advanced technology to keep
up with the desires of our space research. These new inventions would
then slowly make its way into the market as scientists would realise that
their inventions can be used to solve other problems in our daily lives.
Examples One such example would be the introduction of Liquid Cooling Suit
during the Apollo Space Program. The suits main aim is to help remove
heat from the body when astronauts leave their space shuttle for extra
vehicular activity and exploration. These suits keep the users body and
at body temperature as heat generated by the body cannot be lost quickly
enough. This technology since then has incorporated into conditions
where open-air cooling is difficult or impossible to achieve, such as
firefighting, working in a steel mill and increasingly by surgeons during
long or strenuous procedures. This is just an example how technology
designed initially for use in space and be adapted to for use on Earth in
our daily lives.

Link Therefore, Space Exploration can indirectly benefit us in the long run as
the increasing amount and quality of technology and invention required
to make space exploration safer and to allow us to push ourselves to the
limit while exploring and learning about the unknown.

Other examples:
1) Microgravity allows for the optimal growth of the unique and complicated crystal
structures of proteins leading to the development of medical treatments (eg.
hematopoietic prostaglandin D synthase (H-PGDS), which may eventually be used to
create drugs to treat muscular dystrophy)\
2) Canadarm, Canadarm2 and Dextre, the Canadian Space Agencys family of space robots
performing the heavy lifting and maintenance aboard the International Space Station,
provided the technology for the creation of neuroArm, the worlds first robot capable of
performing surgery inside magnetic resonance machines. In 2008, Paige Nickason had an
egg-shaped tumour removed with the help of neuroArm.
3) Allows for study of the mechanisms of osteoporosis in humans by studying mice in orbit,
which eventually led to the creation of Prolia, a pharmaceutical to treat osteoporosis

Social benefits regarding Space Expedition

Point July 16, 1969 was the first ever manned lunar landing of the Apollo 11
spacecraft with the immensely famous Neil A. Armstrong. His fame and
popularity as the first man in space has spread worldwide but especially
so in the States, where people are extremely proud that their country was
the first ever to send a man into space. An increase in patriotism and
national pride is undeniably a major benefit of space programs
worldwide.
Elaboration National pride and patriotism are the positive feelings that the public has
for their country and when they are emotionally attached to their country
respectively. They go well together hand in hand and is usually brought
about by a countrys achievements or their culture and history. The
countrys space program is no less. Space is considered to the general
public as a mysterious and grand place. By knowing that their country is
able to send astronauts and satellites into space by their own, it can bring
about a huge wave of pride to the public as they believe that their
country is superior to be able to send men into space.

Examples A survey conducted by Pew Research Centre in 2011 showed that close
to 70% of the general public believed that their space program has
contributed to their national pride and patriotism. This is a clear
indicator on how the West views their space program especially how
proud they are whenever their country reports about a new space
initiative or a successful space expedition. However, this is not just
limited to the West, similarly, in China, the public is extremely
fascinated with their countrys progress in their space program. This can
be seen after their first manned expedition to space in the Shen Zhou 5.
The astronaut Yang LiWei became an instant celebrity after the space
flight. This is because the aspiration by the general public for their
country to explore outer space has been realised by him.

Link Therefore, the space exploration is important in increasing national pride

as it can make the people more patriotic to their country. Which is
important for the government now as the younger generation is
becoming more cynical and less trusting of the government, especially
in a more socialist country like China.