Driving home today, the DJ on the radio announced that possible large bodies of liquid had been found on Saturn's moon Titan. He asked if we could fix the high price of gasoline before we found liquid on Titan. His question, more generally: could we worry about smaller problems that affect ordinary people every day before we make progress in space exploration?

The answer is no, because that's not the way the world works. There will always be smaller everyday problems that affect the general public in need of a solution. The price of gas, for example, has to do with basic supply and demand economics, government policies, international politics, and current technology. When that problem is “solved,” another will take its place. But if that DJ thought for a minute outside of his own infinitesimally small bubble, he might have realized that the single parent with no car and no money for food and rent cares little about the price he pays at the gas pump, and that the millions dying in Africa certainly don't care, either. There are billions of problems on this planet, and he needs to look beyond himself and realize that his don't get first priority.

Space exploration is about looking beyond ones self. At first glance, the discovery of liquid on another celestial body might not seem important to the average person. But the technology it took to detect that liquid might be connected to technology we use on a daily basis, technology we couldn't dream of living without, technology that saves lives. The international collaboration this discovery may bring would make diplomats jealous. The inspiration that this discovery may have on a child's imagination, which may affect who that child becomes, is priceless. The long-term sustainability of the human race will directly depend on the environments outside of Earth. If we wait until Earthly problems are solved, we will never move beyond our current existence (that is, the U.S. would remain frozen in early 21s century technology and scientific mentality, and other countries will rise to take up the role as world superpowers). For very little money per taxpayer per year, we progress.

How can we afford to invest in space exploration? The better question is, how can we not?