Carl Sagan once said "every planetary civilization will be endangered by impacts from space, every surviving civilization is forced to become a space traveler - not out of exploratory or romantic zeal, but for the most practical reason imaginable : staying alive... If our long-term survival is at stake, we have a fundamental responsibility to our species to venture into other worlds The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, carries out Sagan's words every day President Dwight D. Eisenhower created NASA in 1958 with the purpose of carrying out peaceful rather than military space exploration and research to contribute to society. 11 years after creation, NASA sent Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the Moon, the first humans to accomplish this feat. NASA's research and innovation looked promising, but they came at a cost. Money, resources, and space accidents, most famously Apollo 13, hindered NASA's research. In the 21st century, the funding debate for NASA is at its peak since the organization's inception in 1958, especially when there are numerous problems around the world. Is the money spent on space exploration worth the benefits and progress it brings to society? When considering this topic, you may wonder why explore space? We explore space to compare other planets with the earth and to study the sun, to explore the universe and discover if intelligent life exists, for satellites to improve communications, weather forecasting, navigation, resource monitoring and "to create a focal point for a new intellectual renaissance” (Ruzic). When considering space exploration, one can look to Columbus never set out to find a better trade route but instead found the new world, t ...... middle of paper ......fe, with the inventions they produced and learning what they did I think the budget should be increased I firmly believe that science holds the answers to our problems in the world. If NASA and other scientific organizations continue their research, I think the issues and problems in the world will solve themselves. For example, if NASA or another organization found a way to effectively convert salt-contaminated water in fresh drinking water, our water scarcity problem would be solved. Maybe NASA has found a way to run cars or other transportation on dirt, sand, or grass (very unlikely but possible). NASA would need workers to build these devices, which would create many low-educated jobs across the country. Continued funding of NASA and other scientific organizations will solve the world's social injustice problems.