Some people think governments should spend as much money as possible exploring outer space (for example, traveling to the moon and to other planets). Other people disagree and think governments should spend this money on our basic needs on Earth. Which of these two opinions do you agree with? Use specific reasons and details to support your answer.

　　Spending Money on Space Exploration

　　Many people are in favor of spending large amounts of money on exploring space, particularly the moon and other planets. I fully agree with these people for several different reasons. For one, we are running out of space on Earth and need to colonize other planets. And, second of all, exploring space will help people learn much more and increase their knowledge in many different fields.

　　The population of Earth continues to increase every year while Earth’s natural resources are becoming depleted. For these reasons, we should consider moving off the planet and colonizing either the moon or some other planets. This will accomplish two things. It will allow large numbers of people to migrate to other planets, thereby easing the population crisis on Earth. And it will enable us to utilize the natural resources of other planets, thereby helping to preserve Earth’s. By exploring space now, governments can obtain the knowledge they need to be able first to travel to other planets and then to colonize them. For example, recent unmanned visits to Mars have shown that, with the proper technology, Mars could be made inhabitable for humans. However, governments need to spend more money on the space program to be able to invent the necessary technology. By spending money now, the payoff in the future can be tremendous. Second, governments should spend more money on exploring outer space simply because it will help increase human knowledge. The space program has already helped astronomers learn much about the universe and everything in it. Also, the space program has helped people learn more about Earth. By providing more funding for space programs, we can increase this body of knowledge. Indeed, many discoveries and inventions by the space program have helped to improve life on Earth in many different fields, including technology and medicine. By continuing to fund space programs, surely there will be even more advances made in these fields.

　　Strongly believe that governments should continue to fund their countries’ space programs. These programs will not only help humans eventually leave Earth and colonize other planets but will also contribute to the knowledge that we on Earth possess. Countries should be encouraged to support their space programs. Doing so will improve the lives of people both on Earth and off of it.