Images from www.thepopfoto.com Mp3 Coast To Coast Archive www.filefactory.com Guests: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Catherine Austin Fitts Space Exploration & Innovation: On Thursday's show, astrophysicist and director of the Hayden Planetarium, Neil deGrasse Tyson, discussed how we can get back on track to become a space-faring society once again, and what we stand to lose if NASA doesn't regain its ground as a force for innovation. The current situation with NASA dependent on the Russians to bring its astronauts to the Space Station saddles the US with an "opportunity cost," he commented, explaining that if we don't have an ambitious near-term plan to advance the space frontier, then the concept becomes lost from society. The space program in the 1960s was part of a forward-looking culture, and innovation permeated society during this decade, he noted. But, when it became apparent that the Russians weren't planning to go to the moon, the US lost interest in further moon missions, b! ecause their militaristic motivation was no longer in effect, he explained. Now the motivation for space missions and explorations could be a kind of economic investment, with a potential huge return from new technologies and industries, Tyson said. For instance, the moon could be harvested for Helium 3, useful in nuclear fusion reactors. He suggested that we double NASA's budget and give them a high profile mission statement. This could serve to recreate the innovation culture that prevailed in the
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