The National Aeronautical and Space Administration was once the epitome of American pride. During a time of cross-national competition to learn more about our solar system, it was the United States who stood at the forefront as the leading industrialized nation in the world. Providing the main source of pride for an entire nation, NASA's allowance "consisted of only 4.41% of the federal budget". In today's terms with the rise of inflation that's equivalent to "about 1% of the budget for the 2017 fiscal year". However, the agency that once used to be America's greatest provider of innovation now only receives "around four-tenths of that one percent" (TheNdgvids). After endless budget cuts NASA has been reduced to a shell of its former self. 

During a 2011 TAM (similar to the more established TED Talks) meeting that was held in Las Vegas, Nevada, a group of four highly renowned astrophysicists gathered to discuss NASA and the space industry as a whole. When told how there was not room in the world to increase NASA's budget, Neil DeGrasse Tyson made a point in explaining "the U.S. bailout of the banks (during the recession) exceeded that of NASA's fifty year lifetime budget" (TheNdgvids). To put that into context, in fifty years NASA has launched thousands of satellites into space, landed a man on the moon, and effectively created and established a GPS network system that covers the globe. All of these things and NASA continues to receive budget cuts with the words "there is not enough money", when in all actuality the money is, and has been, there the whole time. It is a matter of choice not to increase the National Aeronautical and Space Administration's budget, not a consequence of invalid funds. Throughout this paper I will explain the importance of increasing the administration's funding for the betterment of the United States economy and humanity as a whole by exploring the ways that NASA has provided both new technological developments and created thousands of jobs in the private sector. 

In a field of such vital importance to the safety of humanity, it would be assumed that NASA would receive a generous amount of funding in order to keep their research flowing and America's title as the supreme number one in the space industry firmly intact. However the National Aeronautical and Space Administration was only granted "$18.5 billion for the 2016 fiscal year". Some may argue that billions of dollars should be plenty for any one agency, but as it stands NASA is only allocated about four-tenths of one percent of the federal budget. In a comparison, the Department of Defense was given "$523.9 billion dollars for the year". In other words, the amount of money given to the DoD for just one year could fund the "entire department of NASA twenty-nine times over" (Amadeo). Granted the Department of Defense does require a larger allocation of the budget, since the United States is not currently engaged in war the funds should be reallocated to fit NASA's needs for the time being. Budget deficit's such as these, show that the room for improvement is there. More important than the numbers is the actual decrease in production and development that NASA experiences as a result of continued budget cuts. 

The first United States satellite was launched on January 31st, 1958. Three years later on May 25th, 1961 "President John F. Kennedy announced the ambitious plan to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade" (Amadeo). With an all time high federal budget allocation of 4.41% this became possible. The irony is that the amount of money NASA was being granted during this time estimates to around $43 billion in today's economy. In theory by simply doubling NASA's current budget they would have similar developments to that of first putting a man on the moon; a feat that changed the world and our understanding of it, and it is all within the reach of just 1% of the federal budget. After years of reduced budget cuts it becomes fascinating to imagine where the United States would be today if NASA had continued with developments as innovative as the lunar landing. With that being said, even with a limited amount of resources the National Aeronautical and Space Administration has still continued developing new technology that many benefit from on a daily basis. 

Many are unaware just how much NASA has an impact on their daily lives, more specifically through the technology that the space industry produces. After requiring a portable self-contained drill needed on the moon for the Apollo space mission, Black and Decker created "a computer program to optimize the design of the drill's motor and insure minimal power consumption". The computer program they developed later led to the well known "cordless miniature vacuum cleaner called the Dustbuster". With the development of the Dustbuster, we have also seen hundreds of spin offs and replicas that have provided thousands of jobs to American workers all because a drill was needed on the moon. Even more impressive was the development of the Tempur-Pedic mattress company that "got its start when NASA scientists wanted to provide comfortable seating for pilots on long journey's through space" (McBrien). Not only was this a new product that was brought into the market place, but a whole company that saw its rise to fame in the private sector after simply providing seating to the National Aeronautical and Space Administration. In turn thousands of jobs were created and millions of dollars earned by the federal government in tax revenue. 

Professor H.R. Hertzfeld of George Washington University conducted a study in 2002 that showed how companies who work with NASA see a significant return on investment when the dealings are done. "The 15 companies studied received $1.5 billion in benefits from a NASA R&D investment of $64 million" (Amadeo). The reasoning behind this is simple, as shown with the Tempur-Pedic mattress and the Black and Decker Dustbuster, companies will work with the administration and afterwards be left with something they can market and continue to develop in the private sector. Since 1976, "NASA has created 1,400 inventions that wound up as products or services" all with a story to tell and countless Americans who benefited from the product or service in some way. Imagine you are traveling along the interstate and trying to find what exit to take without a GPS, well without the help of NASA's satellite network Global Positioning would be a figment of the imagination. ATM's are another huge convenience that many take for granted on a daily basis. Without satellites, the ability to make virtual transactions on the fly would be impossible. Countless technological developments have been created all from essentially what was left over after NASA's research was complete. With this in mind, the idea of increasing the National Aeronautical and Space Administration's budget becomes a no brainer. Products aside, the space industry has created its own name in the tourism market, and as of 2016 multiple companies have seen their rise to fame each working against stiff competition to be the first to bring safe and effective space travel to the civilian world. 

Virgin Galactic is a company owned by billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson that focuses on the future of providing space flights to private citizens. Of its "$1.2 billion annual budget, $850 million comes from NASA itself for the development of private spacecraft" (Moskowitz). The development of the space tourism industry will one day pay off and provide a next generation type of experience to those who are able to go. As is the trend in the marketplace, at first the cost for each flight will be great because the technology will be so new. for However as time passes and the technology becomes mass produced, the cost per flight will decrease. This will increase the supply which will in turn positively affect the demand so that an equilibrium point can be set. The fact that space flight is a service and not a good means that many of the individuals will return for future flights which adds to the possible tax revenue to be earned from the next generation of  the tourism industry. However it is important to discuss how the exploration of space, and even close proximity tourism, could benefit humanity as whole. 

In order to better understand and protect our world, and our solar system for that matter, it is of vital importance for NASA to receive the proper funding required to continuously scan the skies for dangerous asteroids and conduct research on various objects found in space. At one point in time regarded as impossible, the idea of visiting another planet became a reality for the National Aeronautical and Space Administration on August 6th, of 2014. The agency has actually landed a rover on planet Mars and learned a great deal about the planet in turn. In example, we now know at one point there was water on mars most likely in the form of frozen lakes. With our conception of Mars being the hottest planet in our solar system (apart from the Sun of course) it is mind boggling to imagine that at one point its landscape could have looked completely differently. In turn this opens a whole new realm of possibilities for what planet Earth possibly look liked in the past, and gives insight into the potential threats in our solar system, such as asteroids. 

Asteroids as aforementioned are just one example of the many dangers NASA stays on the lookout for in our solar system. On February 15th, 2013 "a relatively small asteroid entered Earth's atmosphere, exploding over Chelyabinsk, Russia, and releasing more energy than a large atomic bomb". Thankfully with no loss of life, this collision has been used as a learning experience however it shows that the idea of an asteroid colliding with Earth is not science fiction. This is a real threat that has a very real possibility of ending all life, as we know it. "NASA is now pursuing new partnerships and collaborations to accelerate NASA's existing planetary defense work" which shows that they are continuously researching new ways to go about setting up an effective defense network even with only four-tenths of one percent of the federal budget to work with. In order to achieve a better understanding, NASA is currently developing an Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), which will be the "first-ever mission to identify, capture and redirect an asteroid to a safe orbit of Earth's moon for future exploration by astronauts in the 2020s". With such a viable threat looming over humanities head it should seem obvious to direct whatever resources we can to the development of our global protection, thus making an increase in NASA's budget an obvious solution. However, in the grand scheme of things asteroids are not the only threat that could be entering Earth's atmosphere. 

While some may perceive the idea of extraterrestrial life as nonsense, the idea that we are alone in a universe of literal astronomical size becomes quite unlikely. With this is mind, although we may never know when that fateful message is coming, it should be of great importance to humanity as a whole to continuously be searching for signs of life in our galaxy. The problem comes with of course just how massive the universe truly is. It may take thousands of years before we are able to come into contact with another form of intelligent life; however NASA continuously makes advancements in its radar detection and satellite imaging to continue the search. Unfortunately with continued budget cuts it becomes increasingly difficult for NASA to stay at the top of its game. However the future of the United States federal budget shows a slimmer of hope for the administration. 

Throughout the endless reasoning on the importance of the National Aeronautical and Space Administration, a clear solution must be prevalent. Congress has proposed a budget of "$19.3 billion for the coming 2017 fiscal year" and it is of clear importance that this deal go through. This would be the first time in years, NASA has seen an increase in its allocated portion of the federal budget which would be a huge first step in the right direction. The benefits observed from funding NASA cannot be overstated. Hundreds of thousands of jobs have been created in the private sector from what was essentially the "leftovers" of NASA's involvement in different situations. Technological developments ranging from the first ever Dustbuster, to Tempur-Pedic mattresses, all the way to the existence of the Global Positioning System and the software behind the Automated Teller Machine. Aside from advancements in goods and services, incredible research has been done on the protection of our planet from asteroids and other flying objects, on the search for intelligent life in our galaxy, and even to gain a better fundamental understanding of the planets in our very solar system. The National Aeronautical and Space Administration continues to do amazing things, but with only four-tenths of one percent of the federal budget under their control, their ability to research and develop new technology at such an astonishing rate has declined steadily over the years. A change is in need to return NASA's budget to its former glory, and show the world that the United States is still the supreme superpower we once were. 

