The NASA’s Future, Essay Example

NASA’s Deputy Administrator Lori Garver claimed that the future of space exploration lies within the commercial space industry while speaking at the International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight (Moskowitz, 2011). Ms. Garver’s comments come in the aftermath of NASA’s decision to retire its space shuttle program earlier this year. Ms. Garver assured that NASA remains committed to space exploration but now wants to go for more advanced projects such as landing humans on asteroid first and then Mars. This is why NASA wants a more focused approach towards future projects and wants the private sector to take on responsibilities such as transportation to low-Earth orbit and the International Space Station.

Ms. Garver’s expectations are not without merit because private entrepreneurs such as Virgin’s Sir Richard Branson, Microsoft’s co-found Paul Allen, and Paypal’s co-founder Elon Musk already have space exploration start-ups (Stern, 2011). These entrepreneurs have founded startups not only due to personal fascination but also the fact that they see a huge commercial potential in private space tourism. This is good for NASA, too because private sector tends to be more efficient in resources management than the government sector where inefficiencies result from bureaucratic structure.

NASA engaged in space exploration as part of a national strategy while private sector is motivated by a profit potential which may result in more productive inventions such as reusable space shuttle. NASA is aware of the potential benefits of private sector participation as Ms. Garver admitted that the commercial space industry will result in lowered costs, greater capabilities, and a more robust American space program overall(Moskowitz, 2011).

References

Moskowitz, C. (2011, October 21). NASA’s Future Depends on Commercial Space Success, Deputy Chief Says. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from http://www.space.com/13355-nasa-commercial-spaceflight-future-garver.html

Stern, M. (2011, April 24). Interview: Elon Musk. Retrieved October 24, 2011, from http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2011/04/24/interview-elon-musk.html