Earthrise was the inspiration behind the Perspective Is Everything tagline of the Apollo 11 40th Anniversary symposium at MIT. This is no banal linkage. Seeing Earth from space changed it all. At the time, that spectacular image brought into sharp relief our planet’s seeming fragility and, it is argued, inspired the environmental movement of the 1970s that expanded and continues to this day. The goal of the symposium was not only to celebrate the achievements of the past, but also to analyze the current state and what space will mean going forward. In a “what have you done for me, lately” world, the average citizen could be forgiven for thinking that space exploration just ain’t what it used to be. The people at this gathering were hell-bent on banishing that perception.

If there was a watchword for the symposium it was energy. Combined with environmental concerns, energy was the prime preoccupation of nearly every participant. Any why not? Energy sustains life. The search for it and the procurement and protection of it are at the center of our economic, environmental and political circumstances. That pretty much runs the gamut doesn’t it? The space race provided the raw materials, both in terms of material invention and human ingenuity, that revolutionized innumerable aspects of our daily lives. And now many, including those at this symposium, believe that space may once again hold answers for some of our most vexing challenges. One is a plan to employ a combination of manned and robotic space missions to gaze back at Earth to better understand our environment and weather. Another is human exploration of Mars and beyond in hopes of discerning the particulars of planetary composition and evolution. This would not only provide potential new sources of raw materials but also allow us to perhaps peer into the past of what Earth was or to the future of what we may become.

Yet NASA has a PR problem. Even in light of the accomplishments and precedents of the Apollo program and the mind-blowing advancements since, there are still significant numbers of Americans that view our adventures in space as a waste of both time and money. This yawning chasm between the public perception of space mission utility and actual progress needs to be addressed if NASA’s (and humanity’s) goals are to be reached. Ted Sorenson, former counsel and speechwriter for President Kennedy argued that we need to find solutions that fit today. It is a problem of wrong analogy, he said. Simply stating that the United States must embark on an Apollo or Manhattan Project or Marshall Plan style effort to solve our environmental and energy needs is not sufficient. Sorenson, and several others at the symposium, are well aware that new rules must be written to appeal to the next generation of scientists and leaders. Without public support and in the absence of inspiration, the promises of space may never be fully realized.