Here's something I found elsewhere on the Internet that further demonstrates the need to continue space exploration:


A recent discovery made from space is about to have a major,
positive impact for many of those who claim that we should not waste
time an resources on space when we need to focus on earthly, human
issues. Space and earth are not seperate places.
The earthbound mode of thinking needs to be dropped.

The recent discovery made from space is the discovery of a large
underground lake in the Darfur region of Sudan. Political and social
activists, the kind of folks who are known to traditionally complain
about the NASA budget, have been righteously concerned about the
murderous conflict between black African farmers and Islamic
elements in Darfur. The shortage of water in Darfur has been the
root cause of many of the violent confrontations in Darfur,
according to reports from that region. Plans are underway to drill
at least 1000 wells in Darfur. The newly discovered water will help
bring peace and new prosperity to the peoples there.

The slaughter of innocents in Darfur, where more than 200,000 have
been killed over the last four years, may very well subside now that
an ample supply of fresh water has been identified by earth resource
satellites over Darfur. That water supply is estimated to be as
large as the 10th largest water supply in the world, North America's
lake Erie.

The discovery of this ample supply of water under Darfur was led by
Farouk El-Baz, director of the Boston University Center for Remote
Sensing. Farouk El-Baz is the same Farouk El-Baz who was one of the
Apollo lunar scientist back in the 1960s and 70s. Once again, the
dollars invested in Apollo have paid off in a bigway. The essential
connection bewteen earth and space has been demonstrated once again.

- Jim McDade