How can people in our society today be so aloof of the capabilities of the space program?

[KnightInShiningArmorDis92]

I remember watching the "Inspiration4" documentary on Netflix and remember hearing a person, one of the family members I think saying that they thought one of the crew members were going to the Moon.

We haven't had the ability to launch people to the Moon since 1972 but in a couple of years NASA might have that capability.

How could our society be so aloof?

Is mainstream American suburban society too invested in reality TV and the NFL to to become knowledgeable of anything else? Or is that just a funny strawman?

I'd love to see the reactions of the suburban masses if they saw promos for big budget space adventures on the channel of their favorite reality show.

 

[goofyernmost]

There are lots of reasons but saying them would get me banned from the site.

 

[MamaMermaid]

I remember watching the "Inspiration4" documentary on Netflix and remember hearing a person, one of the family members I think saying that they thought one of the crew members were going to the Moon.

We haven't had the ability to launch people to the Moon since 1972 but in a couple of years NASA might have that capability.

How could our society be so aloof?

Is mainstream American suburban society too invested in reality TV and the NFL to to become knowledgeable of anything else? Or is that just a funny strawman?

I'd love to see the reactions of the suburban masses if they saw promos for big budget space adventures on the channel of their favorite reality show.

Aloof? Eh. I think that people are consumed with much more pressing issues that impact peoples' daily lives than to care too much about what's happening with space unless it's a hobby or passion.

Is it cool? Absolutely.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Maybe some answers in the replies here ?

 

[Colleen27]

People are more focused on things that impact their day-to-day lives. We were a much less stressed society during the era when space exploration really captured the public's imagination, and that left more room for dreaming.

Besides, with space becoming just another playground for conspicuous consumption, I think for most Americans it is becoming more on par with Dubai or Bali - a gorgeous place that rich people go to play - rather than the scientific frontier it once was. The Apollo missions captured the world's imagination with the potential for expanding human horizons. Billionaires creating systems so that celebrities and people with more money than they know what to do with can buy an opportunity to take zero-G pics for their Instagram just doesn't resonate the same way.

 

[sam_gordon]

Maybe some answers in the replies here ?

That one doesn't come up for me, but maybe replies in one of these threads:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...ested-in-space-and-space-exploration.3860107/https://www.disboards.com/threads/i...h-are-interested-in-space-and-sci-fi.3852199/https://www.disboards.com/threads/f...t-have-to-be-an-astronaut-soap-opera.3851334/https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...ure-obsession-with-aliens-in-the-90s.3848228/https://www.disboards.com/threads/h...came-inspiring-to-young-people-again.3848034/https://www.disboards.com/threads/w...tation-we-were-promised-in-the-1990s.3836181/https://www.disboards.com/threads/n...on-and-praise-as-the-apollo-missions.3835627/https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...going-into-space.3833246/page-3#post-62881020

 

[mjkacmom]

Is it that time again?

 

[Marrila]

Is it that time again?

I believe it is.

 

[Kennywood]

Part of the reason is because we've squandered the opportunity for inspiration.

The Wright brothers flew their plane at Kitty Hawk in 1903. Man landed on the moon in 1969. In 66 years, we went from first flight to landing on the moon. That's a remarkable achievement.

The last time man landed on the moon was in 1972. It's now 2022 and what have we done in those 50 years? We've sent probes out into space and to other planets. We've constructed the International Space Station. But mankind itself has, for 50 years, been satisfied with being on or orbiting the Earth. Oh, we keep hearing that we'll probably land people on Mars in about 5-10 years. We'll see. But we'll never get back those 50 years when we could have truly inspired people by already having gone to Mars and perhaps beyond.

 

[VandVsmama]

How could our society be so aloof?

Other priorities.

Also, just because you don't see people talking about it all of the time, doesn't meant that they're not interested. During the height of the pandemic when Space X did that first manned launch of a rocket out into space & then they successfully returned and landed safe and sound back on Earth, those broadcasts were watched by millions and millions of people. People aren't aloof about it. It's just your perception that is 'off.'

Is mainstream American suburban society too invested in reality TV and the NFL to to become knowledgeable of anything else? Or is that just a funny strawman?

You know...people can enjoy reality TV, the NFL, and NASA. It is possible. It's a little judgmental, in my opinion, to assume that just because some people watch those types of entertainment that it, in turn, means that they don't care about space exploration.

 

[neverlandsky]

.

 

[sam_gordon]

Not just that, but just from reading posts here on this forum, it seems not too many people have cable/satellite TV any more. They aren't broadcasting launches on Netflix.

I am pretty disconnected from what goes on in the world because I gave up commercial television, and especially the news garbage, long time ago.

Here's NASA's live stream:

If one is truly interested, they'd be able to watch. Very few launches have been on television in recent years.

 

[Mysterian]

*Flimsy excuse to post trailers for space movies and space shows*.

Fixed.

 

[tvguy]

In my community I think many believe the money could be better spent elsewhere. Especially with the homeless situation at crisis level.

 

[RedAngie]

Been there.
Done that.
Don’t care.
Get a life.

 

[Kitty 34]

Been there.
Done that.
Don’t care.
Get a life.

I pretty much say the same thing except instead of "get a life", I say "move on".

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Actually we in fact do have the capability to go to the moon. We know how to do it. All we have to do is manufacture the vehicle to get us there and go. Clearly then what we lack is the desire. Why? Because we've learned pretty much all we need to know and unless we find some unique alien element there that we don't have here (unlikely) there's really no reason to send a man back. And back in the Apollo days we had to send men. Because computers..... didn't cut it. But now with today's computers, we can send rovers there at a fraction of the cost and they will tell us what we need to know.
Now, if only NASA could figure out why we have to keep answering the same question on the dis over and over and over and over and over again.

Part of the reason is because we've squandered the opportunity for inspiration.

The Wright brothers flew their plane at Kitty Hawk in 1903. Man landed on the moon in 1969. In 66 years, we went from first flight to landing on the moon. That's a remarkable achievement.

The last time man landed on the moon was in 1972. It's now 2022 and what have we done in those 50 years? We've sent probes out into space and to other planets. We've constructed the International Space Station. But mankind itself has, for 50 years, been satisfied with being on or orbiting the Earth. Oh, we keep hearing that we'll probably land people on Mars in about 5-10 years. We'll see. But we'll never get back those 50 years when we could have truly inspired people by already having gone to Mars and perhaps beyond.

I'm truly inspired by the Mars Rover Missions and the helicopter. Why is it people need an overly expensive and risky vanity mission to inspire them? Rovers are far far cheaper and we can learn everything we need to from them. We didn't have the computers we have now back then. Far from squandering those 50 years, we have done more on mars far more cheaply than we ever could by sending a manned mission there. We've explored the rest of our own solar system. We've even sent probes beyond our own solar system the furthest away of which is now over 20 light hours away from Earth. We have sent high powered telescopes into space and discovered planets orbiting stars. We've even tracked the black hole at the center of our galaxy. We've made serious break throughs in astronomy and physics as a result. The mission is learning. And we have learned a lot.

 

[MillauFr]

There are lots of reasons but saying them would get me banned from the site.

Why don't you ask slo to post a poll on which topic would generate posts that would get the most users banned from DisBoards?

 

[goofyernmost]

In my community I think many believe the money could be better spent elsewhere. Especially with the homeless situation at crisis level.

If that is what they were to actually spend it on that would be a legit argument. Todays mindset would funnel it to the wealthy, not the needy. Technologically, it is mind boggling how much society has gained because of the space program,

 

[Lumpy1106]

I am stunned every single year when the Challenger explosion anniversary passes without notice IN OUR SCHOOLS. Christa McAuliffe was on that flight BECAUSE she was a kids' teacher. She was chosen because NASA thought she would make the best ambassador to teach our kids about space exploration. The accident was one of those "I can tell you exactly where I was when it happened" moments and it just gets brushed over, ever single year. I just don't get it.