Yes Phil, you are correct. Communications and earth observation in orbit are great examples of space applications that have succeeded. But, they are also things that we've already done. I admit that there is probably more to explore and learn here, near to us, but I was really thinking about more distant space exploration. Our planet is pretty boring from the perspective that we are here, and get get around on it to see what's on the surface. Subsurface exploration in the Ocean (I'd like to know a lot more about those now underwater cities that appear to have been buried by catastrophic floods from ICE age ice dams breaking), and other deep earth observations would be a good thing to learn more about what is going on without planet and how we are affecting.
Higher orbit or distant communications systems are exciting. A repeater or two on the moon for example would be something that we might try and be ready to provide should a moon mission come up on the horizon.
Gregg Wonderly
On 8/13/2011 4:46 PM, Phil Karn wrote:
On 8/9/11 4:47 PM, Gregg Wonderly wrote:
But, if no one who "has the money" wants to fund "space flight", then it won't ever happen privately. I.e. why hasn't the privetization already happened? I think it's because it doesn't "make money". There's nothing "known" to generate value out of space "flight".
Actually, there's one space application that has proved quite commercially viable: communications. Commercial earth resources satellites are a distant second. I can't think of anything else.
Exploration for its own sake is never going to be commercially viable. There has to be some short-term economic payoff. There's a long history of those who have become rich in some other industry funding an earth expedition out of personal interest, but the cost of space flight is still far too high for this to extend to space. It means that the funding of space exploration will have to remain the province of governments for the time being. There's just no payoff for commercial investment, at least not yet.
-Phil