Space Travel

[Potluck]

So, what are your thoughts on space travel. Will we ever get to a place, technologically speaking, where we will be able to travel to, say, another solar system?

As far as space travel is concerned I personally believe we don't take it seriously enough. We live on a planet with finite resources, our sun has a finite life span, and even if it did not, our population keeps growing as we are living longer and healthier lives which will lead to this world being overcrowded. With all that in mind, we had BETTER make it a priority to become a space-faring race if we are to survive in this universe as a species.

According to accounts some 40 years ago we were supposed to have been overcrowded already.
And according to Popular Mechanics we were to be flying instead of using the automobile 13 years ago.

But you do get very close to a point I think you may have been trying to make.
Will we have the motivation for space exploration? We've ditched the shuttle program, used NASA for Muslim outreach and haven't really done much since interest in new frontiers peaked some years back.

Do we want to go to the stars? Some do of course but right now most people are more interested in survival within an economy that can't be sustained as it is much less funnel money into space travel.

 

[Obadiah]

I personally believe we are in the end times and that Christ will return before humans can get this advanced. BUT, I also have to remember that many people from EVERY generation since Christ lived on earth have ALSO believed they were in the end times too! And I ALSO remember from reading history that it wasn't that long ago (around the Wright brother's time) that the average person had the same attitude of saying "it's too hard to do" or "it's impossible" regarding flight itself. A little later it was the speed of sound that was considered impossible to break. But yet all these have been done. We are now in the midst of an explosion of information sharing and an increase in general knowledge all over the world that has never been seen in all of history and in my early life wasn't even imagined, much less considered possible. I personally think this knowledge explosion is also a sign of the last days, but what if it's NOT! What if these AREN'T the last days and this increase in knowledge continues exponentially? If this turned out to be true, to say intergalactic space travel is impossible may look as silly in a few generations as it would today to claim flight in airplanes really isn't possible. Just something to think about.

 

[Potluck]

If this turned out to be true, to say intergalactic space travel is impossible may look as silly in a few generations as it would today to claim flight in airplanes really isn't possible. Just something to think about.

I must agree to a point.
But the days of fashioning a contraption such as an airplane or an automobile to bring in a new era of technology in one's garage is over. The technology we are talking about requires huge sums of money and the collective will of the people to achieve.
Privatization of space exploration may herald in the newer era but again vast amounts of research and funding are needed. The Wright brothers and Henry Ford responded to their dreams on an individual basis with the tools and technology of their time.

What does the future hold? I don't know.
And yes, I too wonder what will come first... our move into space or Jesus Christ.

 

[Knotical]

Overcrowding, huh? Did you know that there are reports, which I am too lazy/buzy (take your pick) to look up right now, that say that there is enough land in Texas that everyone on the planet would be able to live there and have at least 2000 square feet of living space? Couple that with the fact that we still have plenty of space to grow crops, especially with how quickly things are grown now-a-days, that we would be sustained well into the future.

Currently, I just think it is the fact that there is no immediate need, felt or otherwise, that would force us to find a way to travel through space. Unfortunately, historically it has been the fear of an impending threat that has forced major technological advances, except of course when it comes to entertainment.