Sept 27, 2006

My Turn?

Keep our Space Clean!

I recently read an article by a major wire service regarding the problems the space ship Atlantis was having trying to make its way through the flotsam and jetsam (pollution) in space in order to return from the latest trip to the space station.

Is it just me or can't the authorities at NASA and within our government see the problem? We are proceeding to do the same thing to the entire solar system that the human race has succeeded in doing to the earth over the last 500 million years or so. The only difference is that it has only taken us about 50 years to start running into our own space junk.

It is true that the United States is not the only one shooting junk into space. However if we are truly the "leader of the free world," led by the main "decider," we must take the lead in coming up with a global plan to limit and to protect this environmental front. If we do not, space pollution is destined to become a problem on the scale of the greenhouse effect we are now dealing with here on earth.

Do we really want to make a garbage pit out of the whole solar system, just as we are doing with greenhouse gas emissions and landfills on this planet?

It is my opinion that now is the time to deal with this problem on an international basis.

If we have money to spend on bombs and guns in order to try to subjugate the world into adopting our ways, we should certainly have a few dollars to spare in order to lead in the research on methods by which we can insure that we do not continue to leave more and more junk behind after each trip into space.

Many, many years ago I was taught as a young Boy Scout that we were responsible to leave the camping grounds in the same or better shape than when we arrived. Should not the same apply to our "camping trips" into space?

Vic P. Thacker
4116 Colter Drive
Kokomo, IN 46902
vpt@insightbb.com