Step Into an Astonishing Career that Lies Within the Scope of the Aerospace Sector.
By Maria Anna van Driel, www.nexttruth.com
In a universe so vast, is there any hope of us traveling fast enough so that we could visit the far-off realms of space? Will we ever be able to plant a flag in the most distant quadrants of the cosmos? At this point in time we may be as far from reaching other stars as Leonardo da Vinci was from realizing an airplane but it has not stopped scientists from imagining the theoretical possibilities of interstellar travel.
Since the dawn of civilization humanity pondered over the question of where we, as a species, will go and what will happen when we get there. Our fascination with the celestial bodies has evolved ever since. This fascination was so strong it was enough for humans to not only be contented with what can be seen with the naked eye. From initially looking up and gazing at the stars, mankind has invented tools like the telescope to magnify and clearly see the yet unseen. But it was not until the 19th century that we realized that we had the technology to do great things and to expand beyond the limits of our own imagination.
The history of science is vast and complicated. And even though it might, to a modern scientific perspective, comes across as a little bizarre, many old texts depict advanced science fiction looking-like technologies and scenarios where man traverses beyond the limits of the world, and dives into space and the cosmos beyond.
From Science Fiction to Science Fact
There exists a common misconception that all science fiction is fantastical and always has to takes place in a remote universe where civilizations have overcome the energy barrier what makes space-ships travel faster than then speed of light.
While we may not be teleporting people from starships to a planet’s surface anytime soon, many beautiful entries in the science fiction universe do seem to bend the rules about what is or is not possible in our physical universe. Much of these amazing ideas are actually based in accepted science. This is known as ‘hard’ science fiction and not unfamiliar with those working in the wide research fields of the modern space sector. Some of the tropes in hard science fiction are truly fascinating like plausible interstellar travel, advancements in technology, artificial intelligence, communication with light, 3D printers, smart-phones, among others.
All these novel scientific inventions are beyond wonderful. Not to mention super handy! But how is this all going to affect us in the near future? Will we adapt to the technology of human teleportation with the same swiftness as we have embraced the latest I-phone?
If so, how are these evolutionary steps about to influence us social and cultural? Will it provide us with multiply opportunities for us to move forward on the evolutionary ladder and, eventually, become a type II civilization? Or, are we facing the down-hill of humanity as we know it?
Thoughts like these seem to become crucial questions as we venture to colonize the Moon, a space station between the Moon and Earth and, eventually, Mars itself. Perhaps even beyond the yet to discovered boundaries of this cosmic freezer we are swirling in. But before we reach this outstanding way of living as a type II or even III civilization, we are in the need of understanding how we are going to act and react in an area what is still holding this much secrets.
How does long-duration space exploration affect crew health, morale, productivity and relationships back home?
Extreme isolation is something our greatest explorers have faced in varying degrees, but that was on Earth. Imagine what an astronaut has to go through when being absolutely isolated millions of miles away from anything or anyone whilst trying to overcome the psychological impact of seeing the Earth fade away during the moments of hurtling through space on a dangerous mission. A feeling no person has ever had before, at least not since the Apollo missions of the 1960’s. Creepy isn’t?
Even though ‘Gravity’ and ‘Interstellar’ are just movies, they do show us the psychological effects of someone being exposed for a long, loooong time to isolation. Can we keep from going totally insane on an Earth-to-Mars-and-back manned mission? A trip, tentatively scheduled to be launched sometime in the 2030’s and could take 1–3 years each way.
Like it or not but, we simply do not to possess the ability yet to adjust this easily when being removed from Mother Earth this long. Just take a look at the effects of short time span isolation Corona is creating, we can already see what this is doing to an individual.
All these questions are opening a new horizon and demands a new scientific approach in where, among others, sociologists, psychologists and biologists have to take a serious look at what obstacle, whether it be mental, technological, or physical, is the most challenging to overcome if we are going to see humans survive a mission to Mars in our lifetimes.
Astro-sociology as a STEM Subject
We are a remarkable species indeed. We have seen the opportunities in refining our survival skills, we learned to thrive as a collective of cultures and differences in humanity, we have psychologically evolved in highly intelligent problem solvers and even ‘mastered’ to live and work for extended time in the Earth’s orbit. It seems that we are standing on the brink of unscrambling this wall of special vibrating photons what seems to distort our vision of a future evolution. In order to de-cloak the myriad possibilities within or own future, we should consider to educate the next generation (astro)sociologists, psychologists, biologists, astronauts, engineers, among others, who will then apply ‘new science’ to our comfort-zones.
Sure, there is no doubt that particular science these days is inundated with dark dystopias. We just can’t seem to look away from ideas about how society is going to influenced by it. What we don’t often see are ideas about humanity prospering.
This young science, Astro-sociology, is among the first scientific research fields to explore the psyche and behavior of our future selves. And by doing so it is tackling this taboo, or sore spot, in accepted science and, has widen the boundaries which indicate the, in this line of thought, tunnel vision what seems to be taught so abundant since the removal of, for instance, Plato’s teachings.
Astro-sociology, what deals with a wide range of futuristic concepts and themes such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universes, and extraterrestrial life, has only recently applied to modern science (2004). Born from the proverbial rib of sociology, this young science has already witnessed an incredible journey and matured to include professionals from the entire spectrum of the social and behavioral sciences, the performing and literary arts, and the humanities. Which are just a few of the academic departments that play in the Astro-sociology sandbox.
Finally
It turns out that Astro-sociology not only seems to be the designated candidate for supporting humanity to take a new step on its evolutionary ladder by means of living and working in space, maybe even colonizing a new planet, this field of research also provides young people to step into an astonishing career that lies within the scope of the aerospace sector.
Colonizing another planet, it might all sound like a ridicules idea to some but, looking at the past 2000+ years of human evolution, it is highly possible that we are on the brink of stepping through this transparent wall what seems to be the one thing that stands between us being ‘Earthlings’ and us being ‘Space inhabitants’.
