The quest to explore space has been with humanity since we first looked up into the night sky and dreamed of what was beyond. Space exploration drives innovation and enables scientific advances that benefit society on Earth. It also motivates young people to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines.
While space exploration is often viewed as a military or national power play, the reality is that it has served many other purposes. The pursuit of space has created a technological base that allows us to address the world’s most pressing challenges. For example, the hole in the ozone layer was discovered by an artificial satellite, and satellites are now used for everything from monitoring the environment to tracking global oil supplies.
In addition, the technologies developed for space exploration have enabled a growing commercial sector that encompasses private spaceflight companies and satellite launch providers. Morgan Stanley estimates that the global space economy, currently worth $350B, could surge to $1T by 2040.
When considering the future of space exploration, it is important to consider what it is that we want to achieve. Historically, most exploration has been done to serve some utilitarian purpose, such as increasing knowledge or increasing national power. But there is a strong underlying sense that space exploration should be carried out for its own sake, and to see what is out there. To that end, we continue to push the boundaries of what is possible, and are on the verge of achieving new milestones.