I would argue that, in the long run, investing in space and exploring the galaxy is worthwhile in any circumstance, missions in the 60s gave us innovations that no other field could have such as velcro, LEDs and even the computer mouse. Although many, myself included, found the election of Donald Trump last month to be a depressing result, space exploration could be positively impacted from him being in the white house. We know in his first term a key aspect of his policy was to roll out ‘space force’ to protect ‘national security in space’ showing he clearly cares about protecting western dominance over space exploration. As well as this, Elon Musk's close proximity to him and promise that ‘we will get to mars if Trump is elected’ bodes well for the idea that the US may be ready for a new round of space investment in the next four years.
If this is the case it’s time for us to throw our hat in the ring. We need investment in our economy and by putting some money into space exploration we can reap the rewards of NASA’s investment by producing technology that will be necessary on upcoming missions. Britain should work with the US to create high skilled jobs for British workers and make tech advancements from which we could directly benefit from here in the UK. America has had a monopoly on innovation for far too long. Britain should be working to take a place at the forefront of modern technology, and space should absolutely be a part of that.
We currently spend just 0.05% of our GDP on space exploration. All innovations come from the US or China, and we are once again left behind in a field that could very well hold the key to the future of humanity. Our space program is already worth £17 billion a year with the work it does supporting British satellites. Imagine how much that could be if we actually invested into it. It’s time for us to invest big into space and reap the benefits.
