@the5thColumnist @ShadSterling @504DR @chris_hayes @mike Even though the original space race had nothing to do with science, there was a ton of technology spinoffs from the effort. And I assume there is value in maintaining an orbital space station (maybe?). Beyond that, I agree, manned spaceflight is about vanity, hubris, & ego. It's a colossal waste of resources. I'm all for robotic exploration of the solar system, planetary geoscience, navigation, & critical communications missions, however.
@elaterite @the5thColumnist @504DR @chris_hayes @mike the recent commercial manned ~spaceflight is mostly about conspicuous consumption, but a civilizational capacity for living in space can support much more. The science in freefall we can do in the ISS is a start. The ecosystem knowledge we’d need to make an orbital habitat that doesn’t need constant resupply would have applications in almost everything.
@ShadSterling @the5thColumnist @504DR @chris_hayes @mike That's a good point about trying to make the space station as self-sufficient as possible. I'm sure things could be learned from such an effort. Still, flying people back-and-forth every few months is problematic. Maybe once per year wouldn't be too bad, though. (Not a mission I'd want to be on, lol!)