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January 16, 2004
Press Release:Bush Announces America's Return to the Moon And on to Mars ... is it worth the cost?
The National Space Society of Australia's President, Tim McEgan, sent a letter to the Today Show in Australia, and issued two press releases to the Australian Press in support of the U.S.A.'s new space initiative. His efforts resulted in interviews with two radio networks syndicated to over 80 Stations nationally. Reprinted with the permission of the National Space Society of Australia. Press Release: Bush Announces America's Return to the Moon And on to Mars ... is it worth the cost? Following the announcement of a new wide ranging space policy and direction for NASA by US President George W Bush yesterday some questions have been raised regarding gove rnment expenditure for such a program. Since the shuttle Columbia accident of nearly one year ago, the US has been in engaged in an unprecedented review, assessing the entire American space program which has been stuck in low earth orbit since the last lunar astronauts returned to Earth in Apollo 17 over 31 years ago.The announcement outlined sweeping reforms of the US space program including:
- NASA's Shuttle fleet to be retired in 6 years
- Development of a new spacecraft called the "Crew Exploration Vehicle"
- Development of new robotic space vehicles
- Humans on the moon no later than 2018
- A manned mission to Mars around 2030
- Research programs not involving humans may be cancelled or curtailed
The President of the National Space Society of Australia, Tim McEgan, said that President Bush's statement may be the single largest policy announcement on space since Kennedy's famous words "We choose to go to the moon" in 1961 that eventually landed men on the moon in 1969.
Mr McEgan says the 1% of US federal funds that goes to NASA is not a waste of taxpayer dollars. "During the Apollo program, for example, the economic return to America was 7 to 1. That means for every one dollar spent on space, seven dollars was created for the economy through jobs, new products and export income. Besides NASA research creates several thousand commercial spin-offs every year that are used to enhance our lives here on earth.
Alan Shepard, Commander of Apollo 14 once said "When I was on the moon I didn't see one dollar up there. It all went into the pay packets of some 400,000 people who worked on the program."
Here in Australia we don't build rockets or space shuttles, but these vehicles can't fly without new technology and scientific research that are areas we have a world class reputation in. All this research potentially creates new products or enhances our knowledge base which is then valued by overseas organisations. All these new inventions and technological developments improve the nations' knowledge base, creating jobs and export income among other things.
Mr McEgan says that "Most economically developed countries are experiencing a decline in science and technology students. If proposed plans in the US can reinvigorate future students' interest in these areas, it will eventually result in an improved knowledge base in the workforce and hence have a positive flow on effect for the country's economy.
Posted by apsmith at January 16, 2004 04:27 PM
