A Case for Space

I think I have an idea where to go to graduate school, and I hope it is not just a pipe dream stemming from watching Star Trek this afternoon: International Space University. Haven't heard of it? Me neither, which is a real shame. In looking into it, it is probably one of the coolest ideas I have seen in a while... and it has been around for 25 years. If it is so "old", why is it so unknown? I mean, it is a graduate school focused on space studies in all aspects that harbours an international, inter-cultural perspective. Honestly, I think it is how the world is viewing space: we really aren't.

Recently, I heard NASA is planning a flyover of the space shuttle to garner attention and try to bring back that gung-ho space attitude of the '60s/'70s. Personally, I think they are going about it all wrong. We all know that space race was just that, a race against the Soviet Union. The entire American public was in danger during the Cold War and needed to get 'control' of space before the "commies" did. It was this sort of dire need for space rather than interest for the sake of interest that built NASA, the shuttle, and the entire space programme. Today, we are only trying to push interest for the sake of interest. NASA is trying to get people interested in a subject that we, technically, do not need to be interested in. And we all know how lazy Americans can be*.
(* Jokes. Sort of.)

This initiative is only partially getting headlines, penetrating only select spheres of news, though. I found it because I have a deep love for space. If you are not really looking, there is a good chance you will miss most of what NASA says; NASA is just not making headlines any longer. But what is? Really, what is bursting through all the spheres and getting attention? What is the type of news that blasts through Facebook with no stopping? Google Glass. At least that was the most recent burst of interest. That product featurette cleared through most of the channels watched. That made headlines. Before that, KONY 2012. What is it about these? A product and a social movement. Now, I could go on and on about the social aspeects of KONY and whatnot, but, really, what attracted attention was the neat design. It was cleaned up, offered nicely, and presented like a feature film. Both Google Glass and KONY offered the public great design and something to lust after, something just beyond their reach. I mean, look at what rakes in the most about of money: feature films. At the box office, most recently, the Hunger Games brought in 300$ million as of its third weekend. 300$ million! One satellite for Seti only costs 2.5$ million. The public loves new ideas and cleaned up, well-designed products.

But, what could NASA, or any space agency, do? Well, design for the public. Rather than try to reignite that Space Race flame, cater to the new, younger crowd, the crowd weined on new technology and pretty designs, the crowd with the attention span of an ant. I am sure NASA has some pretty impressive design ideas up their sleeves, now it is time to polish some, hell, even make some more really pushing toward the public interest. Space agencies need to really bring interest back into space, and, in my opinion, the only way to do just that would give the public something to drool over, something straight out of J.J. Abram's Star Trek. If NASA were to release legitimate concept designs for an overhaul or update to the ISS, or, perhaps, a new ship that may be lacking in proper fuel efficieny but looks as if it could go to the red planet in style, I am pretty sure there would be a little more public interest.

I mean, look at these images, they are the face of a space-faring society, but we have no interest... An image like this 100 years ago would have launched several nations into the deep nothingness above us; today they are taken for nothing. Please, NASA and ESA and whatever other space agency is out there, push this design aspect. Plan things with set goals in mind, futuristic goals. The International Space University is one of the coolest things I have seen, and, with time, it could become the equivalent to Star Fleet Academy, but, their public design only attacks the "now" model of space, the, I need to say it, outdated, groups of men and women behind computers, "Houston, we have a problem" model. If they could advertise a new future, make it more accessible to more people, push for a futuristic stand point, I am sure that interest would pique, or at least be renewed for this generation.