NASA gets cancelled. Would it matter?

Let's make it matter.

Facebook was down for a few hours this week and it was front page news. Literally billions of people could not use the site. Whole sectors of the global economy could not advertise to their customers, connect with stakeholders, or transfer information. Love it or hate it, Facebook is ubiquitous and everyone noticed when it went down. 

What would happen if NASA shut down? Ultimately, not much. Thousands of people would temporarily lose their jobs before finding new ones. Some members of society would momentarily bemoan the loss of scientific advancement before quickly forgetting all about it and moving on to the next collective crisis du jour. The fact is if NASA were shut down tomorrow only a small percentage of the human race would even notice.

This is because NASA is not relevant to the average person. Facebook is.

Let’s make NASA as relevant as Facebook.

If you’re reading this you’re probably a big space enthusiast, just like the staff here at the Curious Cosmonaut. And, as space enthusiasts, the fact that NASA wouldn’t be missed by the vast majority of people makes you (and us) a bit uncomfortable.

So, as space enthusiasts, how do we change that? The answer is, obviously, to make NASA as relevant as Facebook. And go even further: make people not only want NASA but need NASA. 

Some suggestions to do this (crazy idea alert!) 

• NASA should offer to send one family to live in space for a year and have a baby in space. Televise the whole thing. The worlds first “Astro baby” would be a global celebrity. 

• NASA should become a electric power provider and begin commercializing low-cost, baseload, clean space solar power and space nuclear power for marginalized communities in the developed world as well as for the entire developing world. Let’s make NASA relevant to everyone (not just rich white nerds). 

• NASA should stand up a whole division to investigate and disseminate information related to UFOs, aliens, and extraterrestrial life. For better or worse, many people are fascinated by UFOs and aliens. Having NASA work harder on these topics is a natural fit and would be extremely relevant to the populace as a whole. Bonus: actually discovering extraterrestrial life would, of course, be monumental. 

So, what’s your idea to make NASA more relevant?