Your tax dollars at work - Thanks NASA!

NASA is a great program that produces technical wonders including freeze dried food (yuck) and cameras (YAY - including the one in your phone.

In the past few years we've been receiving photos from various space projects and some of them are just so stunning they look fake. But these are fake news photos! This picture of the moon in front of the sun was taken from NASA's Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite that sits a million miles away from Earth.

"In 2015, it looked back at its home planet and captured a series of images showing what rock band Pink Floyd refers to as the 'dark side' of the moon (more aptly known as the 'far side' of the moon) as it passed between the camera and Earth. It's an almost startling perspective from a satellite that has a primary mission of monitoring solar winds."

Here's one reminiscent of All Hallows Eve- the sun looks like an evil Jack-O-Lantern. This picture was taken by the Solar Dynamics Observatory, which imaged the sun in early October 2014.


"Auroras are a fascinating phenomenon involving swirling lights. When viewed from Earth, they light up the night sky and might make you think magical fairies really exist. This image from the crew of Expedition 32 on board the International Space Station in 2012 looks like the product of an artist's imagination, but it's real."

These are just some of the pictures sent back to earth by the many vehicles roaming our galaxy and they are beautiful (even in a horrible sort of way) and remind us that the universe is a really large and unexplored place.

Do you think that NASA is a good use of taxpayer dollars? What kinds of things would you like to see NASA do or discover in the future? Do you want to be an astronaut? Do you want to go to Mars and be a part of a colony? What kind of discoveries do you think will be made in your lifetime.

Comments

  1. NASA is a feat of human achievement and one of the few things America can be undeniably proud of so yes it is a good use of tax dollars, but their funding is so minimal that progress is hindered. Combining with private companies to reach new venues is a rocky path leading to their inevitable demise because they're an American government backed science venture and our people gawk at the rocket's might versus the photochemical gaseous output emitted, diffusing into their nostrils and circulatory system quicker than the actual rocket traveling upwards. Yes i would help propagate Mars. This planet is nearing population capacity and an inevitable extinction I'd like to avoid or succumb to quickly rather than slowly. NASA, Tesla, Blue Horizon all look to the future which is occupying outer space. It is the nature of man to conquer, pillage, and rejoice in it moving on when resources dwindle. What will happen when Mars is too full?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes I believe NASA is worth the taxpayer's money. Exploring the universe is not only fascinating but important at the same time. Knowing the things that surround our little play and trying to expand our knowledge is vital to growing as a planet and humans. I'm ready for Star Wars personally, we need space ships. But for now I'll settle with a landing place for missiles or a how to bring them back safely. I would be a space man if astronauts were a normal thing. I also want NASA to be able to send drones all over space that can handle the elements and still work. We have to shoot extremely high if we want to be friends with aliens one day. IN my lifetime I don't think about super cool will happen, a space tour of earth at the most.

    ReplyDelete
  3. NASA is a good use of our tax dollars that will benefit future discoveries outside of our Earth. In order to evolve as a human species we need to expand out of our planet an explore the rest of the universe in order to identity with other potential species in the solar system. There are many things that I would like to see NASA discover in the future, but above all is to discover other human life outside of our planet. Another discovery would be the potential of creating and establishing life on another planet or outside of our solar system. Discoveries i think will be made in our lifetime is the discovery of other human life form outside of planet earth.

    ReplyDelete
  4. NASA is one of the most important taxpayer funded programs the US has came up with. Even though the pictures that they show us are really cool, its only the side that they show the general public so they can understand what the program is doing. Aside from the images the program has given astronomers, astrophysicists, mathematicians more insight into our universe and to see if there are other possible life sustaining planets. Ihave always wanted to go to outer space, so being an astronaut would be really cool. besides going on a trip, I would love to live to see NASA discover more planets and more life in our galaxy!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think NASA is not a good use of taxpayer dollars because they seem to always be working on things that don't have anything to do with us or things that take effect 20-30 years later when nobody will care because it doesn't affect them right now. I'd rather see NASA do something that will have an effect in the near future or give their money to people working on "right now" solutions to "right now" problems. I don't want to go into space or be an astronaut. I don't think there will be any real discoveries made in my lifetime, more likely something such as "we can't live on mars or the moon", which I don't think will surprise anyone.

    ReplyDelete
  6. NASA is a great use of taxpayer dollars in that it only has the interest of furthering mankind. NASA has not profiteering bias that would bring into question their credibility and intentions. NASA hopefully will discover far away planets capable of human life. That will be a feat in and of itself but then getting there will be the new frontier of human kind. I think that in my lifetime we will send someone to and from MARS. I would be open to being an astronaut but do believe there are far more qualified people that should go in my place. It really is exciting to see NASA's creations and discoveries as they are published and shared, most of which we were completely oblivious to prior.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think that NASA is a good use of taxpayer dollars, because I believe that space exploration is important for learning about the universe and for finding ways that humans can have benefits from other planets, moons, etc. I would like Nasa to discover faster ways of moving through space, explore and land on more places like Mars or Europa, and just build better spaceships in general. I don't know if I'd want to be an astronaut, given how much training and danger there is and how much time you'd spend in space. I might want to go to Mars if I could bring along my friends and family, because I'd like to go to an ew place and make a new society there. The discoveries I think will be made in mylife time will be about places like Mars, Europa, Pluto, etc. or about how to build better rockets for people.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I believe that NASA is a good use of our money because I believe that there is other forms of life out there and other plants that can potentially house humans. It is NASA's job to find these plants and extra terrestrials in order to save human life. Even though the Earth is millions of years away from being sucked up by the sun, it will happen. I believe that, even though it wouldn't be 100% right, we should attempt to colonize other planets for our survival. I would like to see NASA discover other life that's not on Earth. I personally do not want to be an astronaut nor do I want to be one of the first people to live on Mars. I think that we will soon be seeing people attempting to colonize Mars in our lifetime.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  10. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I believe NASA is a really good use of taxpayer dollars because it will serve a purpose in the future of mankind in helping its survival. I would like for NASA to find alien life out there, achieve humanity's dream of maybe living on a more hospitable planet someday, or possibly colonizing Mars and making it hospitable for life. As much as I find space interesting, I don't think I'm up for the job of being an astronaut or going to Mars because there are so many good things on Earth and the standard of living would definitely be higher here, at least in the beginning. In my lifetime, I hope there will be a way for scientists to land a man on Mars and come up with a way to make it safe for future generations.

    ReplyDelete
  12. I agree that NASA indeed is putting the tax money to GOOD use, surprisingly they do not get enough to continue to explore and actually study out into the universe. It's funny how people argue that NASA shouldn't get funded by our tax dollars, or they take too much of the percentage, when in fact the discretionary spending of 2015 was about $1 trillion dollars and more than HALF of that was used towards the military. We're not in war ? Why spend so much ? What are we afraid of? We're already the worlds strongest military force... Science is approximately 10% of that same chart. Hence they do not get enough support. I personally have interned at NASA's co partner Northrop Grumman and help build a new telescope that they have been working for years. Northrop Grumman has developed a new space telescope called "The James Webb Telescope" which will help research and study new planets, look further out of the universe due to its new hardware and golden platted mirrors. This telescopes mission is to take a picture of where the theoretical location of the big bang occurred and would like to see what exactly happened 12 billion years ago... I would love to be an astronaut, I love space and how the universe works in terms of science. In my lifetime with this new telescope launching in 2018, I believe we will explore and learn so much that, science will soon be funded more tax dollars and citizens will finally realize that space is also important. We can find life on other planets or solar systems, Look into the past with the new technologies, maybe even learn how to colonize mars or answer some of our most controversial questions about life before us.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I personally believe that NASA is a fantastic use of taxpayers dollars. There is a video I would recommend on YouTube that goes into depth describing what NASA could accomplish with the military's budget. We could already be colonizing mars or building mining bases on other moons. I'd love to see NASA accomplish the goal of space mining as this could help them recuperate resources here on Earth and perpetuate space exploration. If I could I would take the opportunity to expand on my medical pursuits and take it to space. Running health experiments and conducting medical research in regards to space flight and habitation of other planets would be something I would be very excited about. Who knows, but maybe someday I can make a move towards space training when NASA begins to expand and open up its potential opportunities when they begin to expand on the missions they do. In the meantime though, NASA is going to be fairly underfunded for the results we want them to achieve.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I think NASA is putting tax money to very good use. It's important as human beings to learn more about the universe we live in and the planet we derived from. I would love for NASA to send drones to the moons of other planets. Moons of the planet Jupiter have been rumored to have ice and water on them which could indicate life. I think understanding our own solar system is the first step to truly understanding the universe and it's mysteries. I would love to be an astronaut, but I don't think I could ever meet the qualifications. In my eyes it is the absolute coolest job anyone could ever have. Honestly, I would not want to start a colony on Mars. I think we should focus on Earth first before we consider migrating to another planet. I just feel like if people think that we have Mars as a back up then it's okay to pollute the Earth's atmosphere. In my lifetime I think we will send people to Mars, and will continue to discover more plats outside of our solar system that can sustain life.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Because my best friend is working at NASA now, I've heard what they are doing often. As we can see through TV, they are researching and shooting space ship to other planets to observe. I heard that in the future going to space and other planets is going to be like a taking plane to go to other countries. I remember the movie 2012. As the earth is no longer able to live, people who only have money could buy ticket confidentially took a spaceship. Even now, there is a travel package to Mars. I think NASA is doing good job to make an opportunity to experience space with more people. I want to go Mars one day too.

    ReplyDelete
  17. As a kid, I always wanted to be an astronaut. At the time, I was obsessed with science movies and books, specifically science fiction movies and novels that were set in outer space. It was especially cool how people, courtesy of NASA, were able to go into deep space and actually walk on the moon. I remember watching movies of that and thinking “I want to do that someday.” Overall, I think NASA is worth tax dollars, because they help us discover new things almost every day. That being said, I worry about the toll that shooting things into space is having on the world. I have read articles that discuss how there is way too much junk in space and that this space junk is contributing to the demise of our world. Nonetheless, I hope to see future discoveries from NASA, like maybe airplanes that can go into space or even an outer space amusement park!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I've always been intrigued by space. Since it seems like a whole other world its always been an interest of mine. I think seeing pictures and reading blogs about space is good information and just cool to know. seeing pictures like this I don't mind paying the taxes, its not like the tax is going to prevent people from buying. maybe my answer is a little biased because its something im interested in. I think NASA is doing good things with our tax money, keeps us educated and is a cool hobby. I wouldn't want to be an astronaut because im scared of heights and I don't think I could even begin to wrap my head around the phenomenon's that happen in space. id like to see NASA take people into space, and maybe do live videos in space?

    ReplyDelete
  19. I believe NASA has a good use of tax money. Their use of tax money will enable us to search deeper into the universe and may discover things that will help humanity in certain aspects. It keeps us updated on how not only the Earth but the universe changes over time.

    ReplyDelete
  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Seeing as how space exploration takes a long time to show progress it is a inefficient way of spending money. For all we now the images could be fake and tax payer money is being wasted. The budget for NASA can be better relocated to some other area that helps improve our lifestyle now.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I think that NASA is a good use of taxpayer dollars because they further our gains in space travel. I would like to see NASA discover a way to travel to mars. I don't want to be an astronaut i want to be a doctor. I do want to go to Mars and be a part of a colony. I think we will make the leap to inter denominational time travel in my life time..

    ReplyDelete
  23. If anyone believes that NASA is not a good use of our taxes dollars they are mistaken. The United States is a super power and innovator for a reason. NASA makes technology that trickles down to businesses. for example, carbon fiber is now used in all super car like Lamborghini and Ferrari. Carbon fiber was not made in Italia it was made by Americans working for NASA. Technology will continue to trickle down from NASA if given the sufficient amount of funding.
    I'm hoping that NASA will consider doing a mission to Enceladus to study it's under water ocean that could contain life.
    I also have no interest in being an astronaut. The fact that being in space your body grows a couple inches is weird. Also a lot easier to just pay for commercial space flight to moon and mars in future.
    I want to visit Mars before I die but do not want to live their forever.
    I'm guessing we will find microbes in our solar system (aliens).

    ReplyDelete
  24. I believe Nasa is a great place to put our tax dollars. They have created many innovations in order for humans to go to antoher planet. I would like them to discover another human life on another planet or see aliens if they are actually real. I would love to be an astronaut for the experience. However, I heard the training is very rigorous I do not think I can handle the training because I do not like roller coasters. I will be happy if I do make it and actually go to another planet. I would want to go to Mars if my while family is there but I am skeptical because humans have not lived in Mars. So they will have to experiment human life on a foreign planet before I trust Mars. I hope they discover extraterrestial on another planet because it will be so weird to know that we did not know about this creature. I wonder if the government will be able to disclose that kind of information to the public. Well, I hope that more people will be able to travel to another planet in my lifetime. All be able to voive their findings to the public because there are many movies about others planets and its interesting to see if theories are actually true.

    ReplyDelete
  25. NASA is a great use of taxpayer's dollars, the information that is brought in through their systems is useful in the long term. I would like for NASA to look for new life, and find new plants that would possibly be inhabitable for humans. I would never want to be an astronaut, because if i went into space I would be afraid due to all the things that could go wrong. I appreciate my life and am not willing to risk my life for something with such a low return possibility. I would not want to be part of a colony because, then i have to take a leap of faith and trust that everything goes to plan. The amount of time everything goes perfectly to plan is slim to none. The discoveries that would be made during my lifetime would have to be another planet that is inhabitable by humans, and then hopefully find new life so we can finally answer the questions about life in outer space.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I think that NASA is a good use of taxpayer dollars since, it is helping potential future discoveries stay on the rise. I think that the people who are taking their time to help better the world in any way should definitely receive support to do so. In the near future I think it would be pretty cool if NASA was to develop some sort of openly available trip into space for people. Similar, to how people go skydiving but instead for people to “skydive” from the moon or something along those lines. I personally would be too scared to ever be an astronaut, so I wouldn’t want to go to Mars and be a part of a colony. I salute the people who are brave enough to be astronauts, however, and thank them for their work. In my lifetime, I think NASA will come to the conclusion if life on Mars is actually sustainable and if aliens actually exist. Or maybe a new planet may even be discovered.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I definitely think that NASA is a good use of taxpayer dollars and wish that it was funded more than it already is. I would like to see NASA have a colony on Mars and figure out how the Mars atmosphere effects the human body. Being an astronaut would be a very rewarding and interesting job, as would any job that supports furthering space travel efficiency or exploration. If NASA had established a colony there already and it well established, I would consider living in a Mars colony for a period of time. In my lifetime I think we will establish quicker and more efficient space travel and automated driving that is more widespread.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I do not think NASA is a good use of tax dollars at the moment. Its hard to believe humans went to space back in the late 60's early 70's, in fact I do not believe we did. The technology could not have been advanced enough back then to even get close to going to space, let alone the moon. NASA is using taxpayer dollars to take pictures. Yes they are pretty cool, but what are they really doing for advancement? We are going to need a new planet to live on eventually and if NASA or whoever cannot find one the human race is dead. I don't want to be an astronaut or anything but i'll go into space to stay alive. I hope in my lifetime we can start moving between planets with ease. I want a vacation house millions of light years away.

    ReplyDelete
  29. As mentioned, NASA has developed many things that have helped to improve our lives, and our knowledge. If I were to judge purely on past benefits, I would say that it has been worth much more of our tax dollars then we have put in. I could, of course, be biased. From a young age, I had wanted to see space, and learn as much as possible as I could about it. As outlandish and far advanced as it is at this point, I look forward to the development of a hyperspace drive of some sort. A form of this is theoretically is possible as far as I understand it. How this supposedly works is that the drive is able to bend space-time in the front of the ship, and unbend it behind. In essence, this would actually move space around the ship, instead of the ship moving through space. Forget Mars, I want to see the other side of the Milky Way.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What Superpower Would You Choose?

Ancient Rome: When Being a Teen was Tough

The 12 Types of Procrastinators and Kittens