<ARS AD ASTRA> : THE 1st ART EXHIBITION IN EARTH ORBIT
- Paper ID
94-iaf-320
- author
- company
The OURS Foundation
- country
Switzerland
- year
1994
- abstract
However, there is another possibility. Several of the most perceptive early space pioneera most notably Krafft Ehricke, pointed out: “While civilization is more than a high material living standard, it is nevertheless based on material abundance. It does not thrive on abject poverty or in an atmosphere of resignation and hopelessness. It needs vigor as well as vision[...] Therefore the end objectives of solar system exploration are[...] social objectives in the sense that they relate to. or are dictated by. present and future human needs." (Ehricke, 1970), “The Space Option” (Bernasconi and Woods, 1993) is an elaboration of this argument that leads to the formulation of an optimistic plan to meet the basic and anticipated needs of humanity through the utilization of near Earth resources. Not only would this approach contribute to the survival of the human species but it also offers some near term hope for the less fortunate societies on the planet to aspire to reaching a living standard substantially beyond their present situation - an approach that none of the current scenarios for “sustainable development" realistically provide for.