Space is just too darn big!
27 Feb 2007 1:18:49 UTC
Topic 192483
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I have been playing around with the Celestia program a bit lately. And even though it is a super cool program, and lots of fun to play around with I fear it has depressed me somewhat....
Our fantasies of real deal space travel just almost seem impossible!......I mean, even if we were able to somehow do the seemingly impossible and travel at the full speed of light.......this would really only be enough to cruise around our own Solar System! Then you have to think about all the ways time would get screwed up.......from my point of view, shooting off at c would essentially annihilate everyone I know!!! They would cease to exist for me just because I went on some vacation out in space.......that's kind of depressing!
We can forget about any realistic intergalactic travel without some type of warp system.......which seems many hundreds of years away.........assuming it's even possible......
Being 30 I don't think I'll even get to zip around in space in any reasonable fashion......perhaps my kids might get the chance....
anyway.....Space is just too BIG!
Is travel even realistic?
I'm still hoping so........
Space is just too darn big!
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Yes Space is big, and I believe it will be hundred's of years before humans will be able to travel outside the solar system. This gives us good reason to spend some resources and protect our precious planet here. :-)
There are some who can live without wild things and some who cannot. - Aldo Leopold
true true, but in doing so, I
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true true, but in doing so, I feel the best way we can do this is to continually strive to achieve these far off dreams of space travels...
working in clinical labs, and the medical field...we essentially wouldn't be able to do near the types of testing for patients as we do without the research put into the physics/and other related sciences to do with the cosmos.....
yes, the dreams seem depressing far off, and we do need to focus on things here at home.......I feel the quickest way to do that is to continually push the envelope for getting out into space.......
I agree with you in that we
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I agree with you in that we must push the envelope but I perfer a balanced approach I don't believe we should expend major resources into one idea that is that far off. For basic research I believe resources should be spent on a diversity of ideas.
Edit: I still have this feeling we should be spending more time looking after this planet in the short term
There are some who can live without wild things and some who cannot. - Aldo Leopold
agreed. balance is the key
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agreed. balance is the key to pretty much everything....
I would like to see the programs here locally improved some....especially before we go and begin planning on building bases on the moon and such.....
like the vehicles and what not......ISS......why is that still lagging so much? Seems so old school even today.
I look forward to the next 10-20 years being really exciting in alot of scientific areas.....computer power, materials, understanding, medical, etc....seems like alot of things are waiting on the power of the computer to be unleashed.
DCing is a big move in that direction.
still seems like a good 10 years more before we could really even start planning much as far as space goes...
Hopefully things will kick in....other than electronics, and refining pre-existing technologies.....i.e. making them better and smaller.......what major changes have there really been?
Still the same ol'combustion engines in our cars, jet planes are essentially nothing much new other than software, and rockets from what 30 or 40 years ago...
It's time for some big developments!!
anyway, I'm rambling......must be time for bed........
I agree, some big
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I agree, some big breakthroughs are ahead. every "wave" we have discovered in the past has been developed and made useful in numerous ways. Radio, light, and Magnetic to name a few. I believe when we finally learn how to detect and experiment with gravitational waves you will see some fantastic advances in areas of space travel and intergalactic communication.
RE: Then you have to think
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Considering that advances in all fields will continue while you'd be away, I don't think it's at all unrealistic to expect to find everyone you knew, on your return, in better health than you.
Many thanks for the Celestia link! :)
Ahh yes Chipper......quite
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Ahh yes Chipper......quite true, didn't really think about that angle, but that's given that we have a balanced focus with our research in general....which I think we as a whole are doing as best we can.....perhaps the balance is really in favor of the science at home rather than that geared towards getting out into space...
would be curious to see the overall numbers of funds going into different areas....government and private separate, and as a whole too.
Seems to be more of a negative media hype towards "space" research, but the numbers would be interesting to see what's really up.
yeah, check out the Celestia......it's fun, I'm hoping to learn it well enough to maybe offer some presentations at some of the local schools one day...or perhaps with our local atronomy club.....been saying that for awhile though.......
JD........that's true! Einstein@home finding it's goal would definitely open a flood gate I'd imagine!
I believe the biggest hold
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I believe the biggest hold back on spending more on Space related R&D is what you want to do in space. What is the potential return on investment. The Military has answered that question they want to weaponize it. Until Civilian side answers that question, R&D Dollars will be short in coming
There are some who can live without wild things and some who cannot. - Aldo Leopold
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Exactly Rod.........what are
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Exactly Rod.........what are the potential benefits to civilian society.....first off, that's kind of hard to predict, but I'm sure some analyst can figure out some scenarios........but.....I still think the media tries to downplay the spinoffs we have encountered.
Think about the general public's view and understanding of say NASA spinoffs...... the majority of things people will be able to come up with is Tang and perhaps velcro! and then they'll smirk about how useless the Space programs are.......
But that's so not true!
There's all kinds of important stuff:
Best of NASA Spinoff's
and the NASA Spinoff Homepage
The potential returns to Society are there....imho
The returns may not come directly from what programs are being worked on in space, but returns will come from the knowledged gained while tinkering around out there....