I love science! NASA has confirmed that the projectile launched into the moon's surface that offered a less than Hollywood spectacular boom uncovered 24 gallons of water. That is so awesome! Water on the moon has many benefits. First, astronauts can drink it. They can also breath the oxygen, once the water molecule is broken apart. Finally, the hydrogen can be used for rocket fuel. Since all these essential resources do not need to be taken to the hypothetical future moon base, a ton of money can be saved!
But with every bit of good news, seems to come a lot of bad, these days. NASA's Ares rocket system (part of the Constellation program) is apparently over budget and the Obama administration is trying to figure out what to do about this. This is sad. After health care and jobs, science is a top priority in my book. And highly visible, highly inspirational science like the space program should be a huge priority.
Please write the president and tell them how important the space program is to human kind. Some good talking points would include the number of jobs created by the Ares program and potential future moon missions, the inspiration to the next generation of kids to get interested in science, and the importance of the USA becoming the space leader again.
The money needed is a drop in the bucket compared to the perpetual needless wars we are involved in. Only three billion more dollars is needed each year. Compare that to the nearly one trillion dollars spent so far on killing people in the middle east.
If we don't lead the world on space exploration, it appears China will be glad to fill that role.