Fourteen arguments for leaving the planet

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light.

I am proud to be part of a species where a subset of its members willingly put their lives at risk to push the boundaries of our existence.

During our brief stay on planet Earth, we owe ourselves and our descendants the opportunity to explore — in part because it's fun to do. But there's a far nobler reason. The day our knowledge of the cosmos ceases to expand, we risk regressing to the childish view that the universe figuratively and literally revolves around us.

The news media reported the $250 million [the cost of two failed Mars missions] as an unthinkably huge waste of money and proclaimed that something was wrong with NASA... $250 million is not much more than the cost to produce Kevin Costner's film flop Waterworld.

It is as inescapable as the laws of physics that humanity will one day confront some type of extinction-level event. But will we, like our ancestors, have the drive and determination to survive and even flourish?

Look at that! If you ever needed convincing that we live in the solar system, that we are on a ball of rock, orbiting around the Sun with other balls of rock, then look at that! That's the solar system coming down and grabbing you by the throat.

I believe that it's only by continuing our exploration of the cosmos and the laws of nature that govern it that we can truly understand ourselves and our place in this universe.

There's something about taking the opportunity to wade into that cosmic perspective that is both terrifying and hopeful... It is said that astronauts returning from space carry with them a changed perspective on the world, the 'overview effect,' in which, having seen the Earth from above, they can fully perceive how fragile our little oasis is and how unified we ought to be as a species.

Many people object to 'wasting money in space' yet have no idea how much is actually spent on space exploration... NASA's budget is not spent in space but right here on Earth, where it's invested in American businesses and universities, and where it also pays dividends, creating new jobs, new technologies and even whole new industries.

Mars is the next frontier for humankind, and NASA will be leading the way there if we aggressively pursue the plans laid out in this budget.

For sure you wanna believe that we're gonna be out there as a space bearing civilization out there among the stars. And that's the thing that I get really excited about, that kind of future.

So I really don't have any other motivation for personally accumulating assets except to be able to make the biggest contribution I can to making life multi-planetary.