Battle for space supremacy

Photo: Science News

A NASA spacecraft has successfully landed on Mars after a nine-month journey. The total estimated cost of the Mars mission is US$2.5 billion. After recent large aid cuts from the US government, and the destruction of Challenger and Columbia, NASA is claiming the Mars mission a big success.
A car-size robotic spacecraft Curiosity is able to send pictures from 57.5 million miles from earth: a great opportunity for scientists to uncover facts about the planet.
After the Mars mission's success, the US president wants to expand the US space programme. NASA is planning a manned mission in 2020.
At a time when the world's big economies and the US itself are passing through their worst financial crises, the high cost of the Mars mission is being highly criticized by some quarters.
The reality is that this type of high-cost mission must benefit humanity. Unfortunately, instead of providing some relief from suffering, the big powers are using the space missions for military purposes. The battle for space supremacy is going on among the US, Russia and China. Satellite-guided missiles, spy planes and unmanned drones have become harsh realities.