Why dose the U.S. Goverment was money on a space program?

Why do they wast tax payers money on finding aliens? Why dont they use it for what the tax payers want like solar energy, cure for cancer and AIDS? Who cares if Japan or Russia finds aliens or discovers new planets instead of us. Let them. What are we going to do once we find an alien? Kidnap it and force it to mate with us? DNA test it. WTF? I think its soooo dumb. And if you ask me we already have aliens that walk among us. The whole Jackson family. Ha.

if you ever graduate from grade school, and look around at all the inventions that have come out of the space program, then ask why waste money.

digital watches
digital computers
GPS
microwave communications
WD40
miniaturization
hand held calculators
medical advances
heart surgery
neurosurgery



the list can go on for a week.

The US government does not spend money of finding aliens. They stopped funding SETI at the end of the 1060s. since then SETI has been privately funded.
You cannot wave money at AIDS or any other disease or desired technology and get results. Science takes basic research which may not pay dividends for centuries. No one cares if other countries make discoveries: science is an international effort that includes researchers from most of the worlds nations. We are not going to find aliens. Interstellar travel is almost certainly impossible. No one will be killing any aliens, and mating with aliens is absurd. Perhaps you should restrict yourself to asking serious questions. Then perhaps you could learn something.

NASA contributes tremendously to our understanding of the universe. It continues a long and very profitable habit of all human societies from the remote past to the present day. Look around you and think of all the things you like and enjoy. At some point someone has had to find it, or invent it. Scientists, engineers and explorers have beavered away to make the modern world.

And NASA isn't strictly looking for aliens. 99% of what they do is observing physical phenomena at various places around the solar system, **including** the Earth. They *are* looking for life on Mars. If they find it it will completely transform our view of life. And chances are that the biggest alien they'll find is a bacteria, not a big eyed grey. If you need a more explicit reason for them to look for life, look how many valuable drugs and medicines are extracted from various plants and animals around the world.

Finally, compare the budget of NASA and the US military.

Why do they waste money on warfare instead of those same things?

More to your point, exploration has always been a calling to humanity; many (myself included) believe it to be fascinating and worthy of much more money than is provided now. It helps further our knowledge of the universe. And of course as Bob B has stated, it helps immensely with invention.

They do not waste money on "trying to find aliens". You may be referring to SETI, but that is almost run exclusively by volunteers (especially since the advent of SETI@home).

Well, first of all, I don't think any tax money is spent on trying to find aliens. SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence is privately funded.

But to answer your question. A space program provides jobs, just like any other jobs program. They require many thousands of employees ranging from engineers, scientists, administrators, right down to the night janitor.

It also helps develop technology and skills to enable us to travel and work in space. Those weather and communication satellites just didn't walk up to space themselves you know. Those satellites provide valuable services.

The development of space technology may enable to us to travel to other planets or the asteroid belt and take much needed resources from them in centuries to come.

Space also helps develop a lot of technologies that can be spun off into the private sector. I believe another answerer gave an example.

It provides an avenue of exploration where little is left to explore on Earth. It also helps us learn and understand our universe and the forces in it.

Lastly, because it's cool. Does every taxpayer dollar have to be spent on something practical. How about we gut the National Endowment for the Arts first, before we gut NASA?

Space exploration is absolutely imperative. A new habitable planet MUST be found. Because one day soon this planet will be overrun by imbeciles that think forced copulation with alien life forms is a subject for scientific research! So there will have to be somewhere the rest of the intelligent population can escape to!

were not looking for aliens ********.

why would you cancel the space program? do you have any idea about the advances in technology that arose from the space program. YOU USE ITEMS CREATED FOR THE PURPOSE OF SPACE TRAVEL EVERY DAY!!! EVERY SINGLE DAY!

dont you dare say something that logically deficient ever again you freaking idiot.

They waste money on the space program because ,humans need to know where we came from ,are we alone.How did it all start .I`m amazed that you aren`t even a little bit interested in this .Nasa is searching to answer the questions that every intelligent human has been asking for century`s .Put down your wii remote and pickup a book.

The SETI program has been privately funded since 1994, and at a low level. The movie about SETI "Contact", had a bigger budget than all the money that has ever been spent on SETI itself.

Why don't you get an education so you can use spell check?

love your question !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol @ jacksons lol

i think they should spend it on helping poor animals off the street and stop the pet population from growing.

There were a few pennies left over from the Middle East wars.