A comparison of manned missions to space and robot missions essays

A comparison of manned missions to space and robot missions essays Since the Soviets put Sputnik into space, there have been many missions into space. Robots have done some missions and people have done others. Robots do not possess human judgment or the abilities necessary for solving problems. However, manned space missions are much more costly than robot missions and they have more risk. In space, there are lots of unpredicted variables and things that we do not expect to occur. Due to this, it is important to have manned space missions. Humans are capable of solving problems, whereas robots only know what theyve been programmed to do. Apollo thirteen would have been destroyed if it were a robot, but since it had a human crew on board, it survived. They were able to solve their problems because they were capable. Also, in space, it is necessary for on the spot judgment. Humans possess the capability make decisions, but robots can only do a limited amount of tasks. This is a large con to sending robots into space. On the other hand, manned missions are much more expensive than robots. A single flight of the space shuttle costs around $420 million dollars. In addition, manned shuttles need places to stay. The International Space Station has already cost $16 billion to build and the price is expected to reach over $40 billion. The expected price was $8 billion. Robots are much cheaper. The Mars Pathfinder cost only $265 million and it brought back lots of useful scientific data. Robots are more economical than manned space flights. Furthermore, manned space missions have greater risk than robot missions. As in the case of Apollo 1 and Apollo 13, accidents occurred on manned space missions. That puts peoples lives in danger as well as space shuttles. If a robot malfunctions or breaks somehow, not as much is lost. When astronauts are lost, new ones have to be trained and prepared for space flight. When a robot is destroyed, a new one can be made and any problems wi...