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Call for a Global Space Revolution

by Shaun Moss
2009-03-21

The world stands on the brink of imminent global change. The challenges currently being presented to human society by instabilities in the global climate and economy are significant, and finding solutions will assuredly occupy much of our attention over the coming decades.

However, in perfect balance, we also find ourselves at the doorstep of the greatest evolutionary leap that Earthian life has encountered since it crawled out of the oceans. We are poised to enter space – not simply as a handful of select persons or machines, but as a species.

The development and implementation of new systems for global environmental and economic management is widely understood to be of the utmost urgency, and, fortunately, steps are already being taken in this direction by great leaders and thinkers around the globe. However, what seems less apparent are the astronomical rewards for humanity that will result from our expansion into the Solar System.

The potential benefits of space exploration and colonization include:

The Overview Effect

By all reports from astronauts, nothing compares with viewing the entire Earth from space. From this perspective the planet appears as a single, whole entity: a shining jewel, a living, breathing organism with no borders or other visible signs of separation between its inhabitants. It becomes more difficult to imagine that one is from any specific city or nation; rather, one sees the entire planet as "home". From space, all people and nations are equal, bound together by the one thing we all have in common – the planet that we are all part of.

This perspective of Earth will lead to a greater unity among its peoples, an effect that will only increase as we colonize other worlds such as Luna and Mars. From space, any place on the surface of Earth is equally accessible; the differences between so-called "developed" and "developing" nations are not apparent, and indeed, from this perspective it becomes difficult to understand why such extreme variations in economic standards exist on the surface.

This profound shift in human consciousness from viewing Earth as a collection of distinct tribes to a single living world, experienced by increasing numbers of people, will automatically lead to the formation of new strategies for global environmental and economic management.

Access to Abundant Resources

Space is infinite, and contains infinite energy and material resources. By developing the necessary technologies and systems, humans can access these resources.

Once you see beyond religious, ideological or other purported reasons, conflict on Earth is almost always about natural resources such as energy, metals or land. Although limited on Earth, all of these are available in extreme abundance in space:

Solar power, collected in an environment where the sun never stops shining and is never occluded by clouds or dust, can be efficiently and safely beamed to Earth (or anywhere else in the Solar System) to provide continual, limitless and reliable energy.
Over 400,000 asteroids have been identified in our Solar System, with more being discovered all the time; the estimated total is over 1 million. Many of these orbit near Earth, and many are composed of almost pure metal, while others are plentiful sources of carbon or water. Access to these resources will mean an improved Earthian economy, reduced need to damage Earth's environment through mining, reduced international conflict, and an abundance of the necessary materials for constructing space cities and vehicles in Earth orbit and other locations throughout the Solar System.
Mars has a surface area approximately equal to the land area of Earth. The colonization and subsequent terraforming of Mars will therefore provide the human race with almost double the territory in which to live. This will only be the beginning; the experience of inhabiting and developing just one such planet will teach us how to colonize many thousands.

Survival

While infrequent, it is known that mass global extinctions caused by asteroid impacts have occured several times in Earth's history, and will almost certainly occur again. Hence, in order to ensure the long-term survival of humans as well as many other Earthian species, there are only two reasonable options:

Establish human colonies at other locations in space, so that in the event of a major impact the human species will survive and may potentially re-inhabit Earth afterwards.
Learn how to modify the orbits of asteroids, or how to break them into smaller pieces, so that a potential extinction-causing impact can be prevented.

Both of these solutions require increase technical capability in space.

If an impactor is above a certain size or velocity, it will impossible to divert or destroy it; furthermore, extraterrestrial colonies will probably be dependent on resources from Earth for centuries. Hence, the optimal strategy for the long-range survival of humanity requires both of these solutions.

Increased Global Collaboration

At our current level of technology, exploration and development of space is still fairly expensive and complicated. Furthermore, considering that the effects of space research are often global in application rather than restricted to specific nations, there is overwhelming incentive for international collaboration in space activities. This has been one of the primary benefits of the International Space Station, which has brought together some of the greatest countries of Earth into a noble and productive exercise.

During the past century several arenas of activity have replaced military conflict, including sport, tourism, international trade, political union, and collaboration on technological development. The nations of Earth have started to realize that co-operation, instead of competition, leads to an improved outcome for everyone. By building on the success of the ISS and continuing with international collaboration on space development, the nations of Earth will be drawn into an even closer partnership. This can only lead to peace and an improved quality of life for everyone on Earth.

Technological Innovation

Countless examples already exist of technologies that were developed for space and have since been applied on Earth (computer technology, structural analysis, the hand-held video camera, communications, IT, sports training, energy storage, robotics, materials, etc., etc.). The question is, would these technologies have still been developed if people were not striving to solve difficult problems in space?

When given an inspiring and challenging problem, the human mind begins experimenting with solutions and gathering information, both consciously and subconsciously, with the result being eventual inspiration and breakthroughs. The challenging environment of space presents unusually hard problems, which thus tends to attract the most brilliant minds, resulting in especially innovative solutions that can have enormous application and value on Earth.

For example:

Technologies developed for space settlements, such as atmosphere processing, in-situ resource utilization, recycling, etc., can similarly be applied to open up huge uninhabited regions of Earth, while also improving the efficiency and function of existing cities.
Advanced robotics technology developed for exploration, mining and construction in space can be applied on Earth to an extremely wide variety of tasks, decreasing the cost of materials, products and services, and improving health and safety.
Energy production methods developed for space applications, such as space solar power or nuclear fusion, can be applied on Earth to provide abundant electricity and thus improved quality of life to all people.
Biotechnology developed for space agriculture or terraforming can be applied on Earth to drastically improve global food production and health.
Carbon nanotube technology developed for space elevator applications can be applied to create all manner of ambitious structures and equipment on Earth, as well as space structures and vehicles.
Planetary engineering strategies developed for terraforming Mars can be applied to Earth in order to improve the global environment, including cleaning the atmosphere and oceans, bringing life to the deserts, and stabilizing global climate.
Vehicle technology developed for space applications will increase the speed and lower the cost of travel on Earth, vastly improving the efficiency of human transport, resource distribution, package delivery and emergency response.

The colonization of space offers hope for humanity. It is simply the only path to an abundant and peaceful future for an expanding human civilization. It will bring us everything we need to develop and grow; without it, our future will be one of increasing restriction, compromise, difficulty and conflict. If the number of people continues to increase while the amount of available resources remains the same, then, logically, this means a reduced share for all. The only other option is population control, which is not freedom; in fact, it would require increasing control by global authorities, and we would ultimately lose many of our technological capabilities along with our peace and freedom.

As an analogy, consider a tribe living on a small island. Their population steadily increases, but the amount of land they have available to grow food remains the same. They know that across the sea is a large, uninhabited continent with abundant resources, but they decide not to risk investing in trying to reach this place, and to focus all their energy on the immediate problems of survival. Eventually they begin to fight over the dwindling resources and further damage is inflicted on the island, and the tribe, until only a few remain to pick up the pieces.

Compare this with another tribe in a similar situation. They, too, are growing in number and approaching the population limit that the island can sustainably support; they also know about the abundant resources across the sea. Even though they are experiencing challenges, they realize that these problems will only get worse unless they find a way across the sea, so they begin researching boat technology while also tending to their immediate problems. This tribe is more optimistic – they know that their problems are temporary, and that soon a new era in their civilization will begin: one of peace, expansion and security.

At this juncture in human history, with the challenges that now lie before us, opening up space should be made an absolute global priority. It should not be something of marginal interest, or a heavy load to be pulled along by a dedicated few, or something we will do "when we get around to it" or "when things are better". The sooner we become a space-based civilization, the sooner tensions on Earth will be relieved and we can enter an golden era of peace, harmony, expansion, abundance, adventure, freedom, health and happiness. It should be commenced immediately, and should be undertaken with wholehearted passion and commitment by the entire global community.

The following strategy is suggested:

The establishment of an Earth Space Consortium (ESC) comprised of governments and government agencies, private corporations, academic institutions, space advocacy groups and philanthropists. This organization would be funded by both public and private money, with each member contributing an appropriate percentage of GDP or profits. The function of the ESC will be to organize a substantial fraction of Earth's resources (in particular, at least 10-30% of Earth's finest minds) into a unified and cohesive strategy for providing the people of Earth with access to the abundant resources and limitless expanse of space.
Government-sponsored financial benefits, including tax exemption or discounts, and/or investment, should be available for all companies involved in space exploration and development, environmental engineering, and the development of critical enabling technologies such as aerospace vehicles, solar power and robotics. This will hasten the development of solutions to immediate global problems, and more quickly secure a better future for all people.
A dedicated, coordinated and well-funded global program for reducing the cost of access to space. Everything depends on it; at this point, the primary obstacle preventing humanity from becoming a space-faring civilization with the resources of the Solar System at its fingertips is the exorbitant cost of reaching free space from Earth. The initial phase of a unified Earth space program should be primarily focused (90%+ of expenditure) on advancement of space transport technology.
A global program to develop space solar power as a method of providing continuous, reliable and abundant clean energy to Earth, while simultaneously increasing our capabilities in space and developing technologies for on-orbit construction.
A global program to develop space tourism as a viable economic motivator for the private space sector, a source of inspiration and adventure to the people of Earth, and an essential precursor to space property development and colonization.
Development of a robust and profitable space mining industry. This will simultaneously provide three enormous benefits: an economic incentive for space development; a great abundance of metals, carbon, water and other materials necessary for construction of a space civilization; and the development of technologies and methods for defending Earth from asteroid impacts.
An international collaborative effort to establish permanent human settlements in Earth orbit and on Luna and Mars. These seeds will become new branches of human civilization, thus ensuring the long-term survival of humans and many other Earthian species. The exercise will also teach us about advanced recycling, nanotechnology, robotics, resource management, advanced biology and chemical engineering, planetary engineering, the successful formation of harmonious, close-knit communities, and many other things that can be applied with tremendous benefit on Earth.

The time is now. It will only become more difficult over the coming years. The past doesn't matter, and neither do our petty conflicts over resources; all that matters now is creating a positive future for ourselves and our descendants. The sooner we make space development our utmost priority and open up space for the people of Earth, the sooner we will enter an amazing new chapter of human civilization. We need to pull together as a team, get organized and focused, and create an exciting new future of peace and freedom – in space.