How much is space exploration really worth to human society? Does it outweigh the costs? What are the benefits and what are our limitations?

Questions to be answered in paragraph form:

1.  In your own words, discuss the various costs and benefits of space exploration.

2.  Make suggestions for three different approaches to space exploration:  sending humans to the moon or another planet, doing only Earth-based research, and one other opinion/suggestion for possible space exploration.

3.  What are the benefits and drawbacks of each of these approaches.

4.  Imagine that you are a member of Congress (government), who has to vote on a new budget (money to be spent).  There is a fixed amount of money to spend, so you have to decide which needs to your country is the most important.  Discuss the top five to ten priority areas (such as medical research, health, transportation systems, roadways, education, science studies, etc...).  Give back-up or your reasonings for your decision. Which would get the most funding (money)?  Where do you think space exploration should be in your prioritized list? 

                    Space exploration is expensive. It is also dangerous. It puts the lives of those who attempt it at stake. Is space exploration really worth the cost? Imagine, you're going to be the first teacher to leave our planet, you've spent immense time training, it’s the day of your launch, you are blasting out of our atmosphere, and because of the weather, condensation forms on the main fuel tank by the rocket boosters. The boosters are about to detach, you are so close to your dream! As the rocket boosters detach.... BANG! The shuttle goes up in flames killing everyone inside in an instant. This might be how it felt to be in the challenger disaster. This is an example of the cost of space exploration. Expensive, dangerous, and risky, I don't know that it’s worth it.

            First, consider how expensive space exploration is. Even if the first things that pop into mind are fuel, construction, etc. You also have to consider research. Launching a rocket takes a ton of cash; you have to consider materials, construction, and fuel. Think about how much fuel it must take to launch a huge hunk of metal up against gravity out of our atmosphere. Research is expensive too, to run tests and experiment to find the best technology needs funding. You also need money for supplies. NASA spent a ton of money making the Hubble space telescope. After launch they realized that Hubble’s primary mirror was incorrectly made, the shape was not correct and as a result everything observed by it was blurry and out of focus. Thus the first servicing mission was born, meaning that a crew had to fly up and replace the mirror. One wrong move and the telescope would be crippled.        

            Imagine, you are returning from a successful mission. When reentering the atmosphere, some of the tiles on the bottom of the shuttle burn off, in a matter of seconds heat flares into the main cabin incinerating everyone and everything in the cabin. The danger of going up in space is known, all astronauts are aware of it. The problem with going up in space is you can only hope to come back. If you think about it, soooooooo many things could go wrong. Even with a lot of training, there are some things that cannot be prevented from happening, in the end you have to ask yourself if it’s really worth the risk. Think about this for a moment, if going into space is risking your life, how your friends and family would feel like if something happened to you. I’d bet that some of the family of those who get to go up into space are thinking only of the amazing pros and not about the serious cons. Maybe it would be better if we finished learning about our planet before trying to find another like it. Maybe we would be better off if we just worked with what we had.

            Funding for programs like NASA is hard, not everyone will agree on a set budget. Some feel that the dangers of space exploration make it not worth putting a ton of money into; others want nothing more than more discoveries and exploration to be done. It is especially hard now specially now, when in terms of economical status, the whole world isn’t doing too hot. The budget for America’s space program NASA is being cut further and further back. When building something like the Hubble space telescope for example, it takes a ton of money and time, and the product itself is delicate, it could; be broken when repairing or when they make a trip for maintenance, just not work, or a part could be defunct rendering it useless.

            In conclusion, space exploration may not be worth the cost. This is because of expense, danger, and financial risk. It seems even the most governments aren’t sure about it. Things to take into consideration are expense, hazard to health and safety, and funding being no help to defective equipment when deciding if space exploration is worth the cost. So the next time someone asks you if you would be an astronaut, maybe you should think it over very carefully. 

Bibliography (APA format)

Challenger Shuttle Disaster- Raw Uncut Footage [Video file]. (n.d.). Retrieved from 
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd7dxmBLg48&feature=related 






Cockpit Last moments Shuttle Columbia Accident + Cockpit Communication [Video file]. (n.d.). 
     Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIJiW8d_c68&feature=related 

Mars Express Radar Yields Strong Evidence of Ocean That Once Covered Part of Red Planet

Feb. 7, 2013

 It is believed that a large ocean once covered with 2 large oceans. The evidence was sea floor like sediments, and ice. That was likely about 4 billion years ago. The oceans were likely not in existence long enough to support life. Scientists continue to look for older bodies of water and or life.

The conditions on mars must have been different to allow the existence of the 2 oceans, I wonder if it would be capable of supporting life. The possibility of life on mars is interesting. It is amazing the technology we have, we know some things that happened billions of years ago.



European Space Agency. "Mars Express radar yields strong evidence of ocean that once covered part of Red Planet." ScienceDaily, 7 Feb. 2012. Web. 5 Mar. 2012.

The Phases of the Moon

   With the model I made the large foam ball was the Earth, the flashlight was the sun, and the small foam ball was the moon.
    Look above to the chart at the top, the very top moon is 1 now moving counter clockwise continue  counting until you reach 8.
1: 1st quarter
2: waxing gibbous
3: half
4: wanning gibbous
5: 3rd quarter
6: wanning crescent
7: new
8: waxing crescent

    No matter what is visable from earth, half of the moon is always lit but this is not always visible. The new moon is when the back side of the moon which is not visible is lit and the side. This lab cleared up any questions that I can think of, it was easier to understand with the model. The disadvantages are the fact that it is harder to see the light on the ball than on the moon. Another way to represent the phases of the moon are the above charts by covering half of the moon and turning your head so the moon is up you can see the phases of the moon.

Reasons for Seasons

Lab Report- Reasons for the Seasons

Guiding Question- How does the tilt of Earth’s axis affect the light received by Earth as it revolves around the sun?

Materials:

    Flashlight

    Paper

    Shish Kabob

    Protractor

    Toothpick

    Acetate Sheet with Grid

    Plastic Foam Ball

Procedure:

       I.            Push shish kabob into foam ball at the South Pole.

     II.            Use protractor to measure 23.5 degrees tilt of the axis away from the flashlight.

  III.            Hold the stick so that the Earth is steady and 23.5 degrees.

  IV.            Use the flashlight to light the side of the Earth.

    V.            Carefully stick the toothpick straight into the model about halfway between the equator and the North Pole. Observe and record the length of the shadow.

  VI.            Turn the model once on its axis. Observe and record the length of the shadow.

VII.            Tilt toward the flashlight. Repeat previous steps.

Observations:

Winter:

·        The sunlight is more direct at the equator and below it, and the grid is stretched at the edges.

·        The shadow of the toothpick is short.

Summer:

·        The sunlight is more direct at the equator and above it.

·        The shadow of the toothpick is longer

Conclusion:

The 7 questions to be written on blog:

1.     When it is winter in the Northern Hemisphere, the north gets the least sun and the south by the equator gets the most sun. In the summer the North gets the most concentrated sun and the south has average sun.

2.     The light is stronger at the equator and the squares are smaller and closer together at the poles, the squares are bigger and more spread out.

3.     The heat in each square is less when they become larger.

4.     The warmest place is the equator it always receives light, at the poles it is the coolest but it also depends on the season, in summer the North Pole gets lots of light.

5.     In the winter the shadow of the toothpick will be the shortest and in the summer it will be the longest.

6.     When the squares are longer the area is cooler, when they are smaller

7.      The tilt, the revolution around the sun, and the revolving causes the axis to tilt near or far from the sun.  Near is summer and far is winter.  The hemispheres are opposite seasons (ex: northern is summer southern is winter at the same time). The sun hits the earth at an angle because of the axis this creates direct and indirect areas of sunlight. The more direct the sunlight the warmer it is.

Current Event Jan. 25, 2012

Hubble Catches Jupiter's Largest Moon Going to the Dark Side
NASA
Hubble Space Telescope
Dec. 20, 2008


       This article has some interesting information about Jupiter, the Hubble, and Ganymede (Jupiter's largest moon). Due to Jupiter's huge size you can only see part of its southern hemisphere. Ganymede is larger than Mercury, but looks like a pebble next to the massive Jupiter. You can see Jupiter's red spot which is a storm that has been blowing for more than 300 years, it is twice the size of Earth. You can also see some clouds and their shape. Ganymede has a 7 day revolution and travels around the giant. It is made of rock and ice and is the biggest moon in our solar system (even though it looks like a marble next to Jupiter).

         This article was great for my project and it is amazing how sharp the planets are even though they are so far away. I wonder which gases make up Jupiter's atmosphere, it says they know a few because light reflected off of Ganymede can show different gases. This is full of facts needed for my project and an overall interesting piece of information. I wonder how the Hubble telescope works. Anyhow this was a great article.

Bibliography
Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI). "Hubble Catches Jupiter's Largest Moon Going To The 'Dark Side'." ScienceDaily, 20 Dec. 2008. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. 

Interactions Between Living Things; My Choice: Canis Lupus (the grey wolf)

The Gray Wolf 

Scientific Name: Canis Lupus

       The gray wolf is usually a misrepresented animal, but in spite of everything bad that is said about them, what is interesting to me is the symbiotic relationship they share with ravens. The ravens provide a sort of alarm system (thanks to their always hovering around wolves), if there is notable danger the ravens fall silent or fly away. The wolves have learned to interpret this as a threat so they are known to take shelter and protect their pups. The ravens also help the wolves find prey. The ravens need the sharp teeth of the wolves to tear open the carcass of carcasses, this is why they can't just find previously dead animals and eat them (the wolves tear open the carcasses of carrion and the ravens get the leftovers). Wolves are predators, they hunt prey ranging to smaller than them to much bigger than them. In the North (From Northern USA to various parts of the Arctic circle) they eat mainly dall sheep, caribou, deer, elk, and moose. They regergitate food for their young (primarily when in the first few months of life).

 

two gray wolf pups observed by Helen and Bill Thayer

Charlie (Helen and Bill's) husky mix interacting with a wolf (possibly the one they nicknamed Mother)

A typical successful hunt ending with a young elk, notice the ravens

Rabbit Bean Populatin Results

                                                                        
This graph shows how the rabbit population grows over the years. The population doubles yearly so the rise in population becomes more dramatic the longer the rabbits reproduce as you can see from 1 to 15 years the change is size of the population is little noticed, but 16 to 20 years the population dramatically rises.


This is a closer view on years 1 to 10. You can see that the population was changing with similar results.

These are the calculated results.