2 minute read
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
A rather strange question came hurtling my way during the course of producing this edition of African Science Stars you hold in your hands. I don't know how to rephrase it but it went something along the lines of "What exactly is the point of astronauts? We have satellites up there, so are they just being paid to travel to space?" It got me thinking, really. Besides their primary role being mission control and general observation during such trips, what stops us from replacing astronauts with robots? I am obviously downplaying their role and would like you to sit and examine the individual roles of each and every single person who works in the field of Astronomy.
In this issue, we outline a few career options as well as list some of the best African universities you can pursue these at. We even explore new gadgets and trends. Just going back to the matter of astronauts; I am sure you have already seen Sir Richard Branson jet off to space in his Virgin Galactic "spaceship" and there was also the super-rich Jeff Bizos following suit in his Blue Origin "spaceship". There is also South African-born Elon Musk with his Space X... Space is going to get really crowded pretty soon!
Advertisement
As early as next year people will be able to fly out to space for a whopping $300 000 (US Dollars) per person. It will get cheaper. At present, its a trip no longer than two hours in which you go high enough to experience what it feels like to not feel gravity.
Beyond all these travel developments we also have to ensure that we, in the sciences, are thinking ahead when it comes to this. What does this sudden influx to space mean for us and Space Scientists in general?
It means opportunities. We are going to have to really think out of the box when it comes to what is next in our various fields. Think space tourism, think about how to open a business in space, think how to have space experience training centres right here on earth … There is a lot.
As African Science Stars, we are all about Africa; if a future really exists out there in Space and one day we might have the opportunity to run this magazine from Space, we would like the whole of Africa to come along. Read about our recent visit to Botswana and how women in science are making some serious strides towards gender equality within the sciences. In visiting African countries regularly we also seek to find out what each country can contribute towards future space innovation? To do this we must also dig in to that paticular country's history with Astronomy.
In this issue, we also go to Egypt where Dr Saad leads us into the world of Astronomy in Egypt. In the next edition, we'll cover another country so keep reading!
We hope that you will enjoy this edition and do feel free to write directly to me on unathi@sciencestars.co.za.
