The shuttle is retired, but our space program shouldn’t be

On July 8, the final U.S. space shuttle mission — officially referred to as STS-135, but commonly known by the shuttle’s name, Atlantis — lifted off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida atop a pillar of smoke and fire. Atlantis, and all its kin, are among the greatest feats of human engineering that the world has ever seen. But it’s time to move on.

The first shuttle lifted off in April, 1981. In its 30-year history, the shuttles have transported more people and cargo into space than any other vehicles. They have conducted experiments, helped construct the International Space Station and furthered mankind’s understanding of our place in the universe.

It’s easy in this day and age, when space flights are taken for granted, to think that the country should retire the space program altogether and focus its attention elsewhere. And while I understand that claim, I wholeheartedly disagree. Our space program has not only provided us with invaluable scientific knowledge, but there are things we use every day that are derived from technologies originally developed for the space program: smoke alarms, cordless power tools, water filters, digital mammography machines, football helmet padding, breathing systems for firefighters and much more.

In my opinion, it would not only be a shame to not continue human space flight, but it would also be an insult to those who sacrificed so much to make it possible, the brave men and women who died on Apollo 1 and two space shuttles, Challenger and Columbia.

I’ll admit it: I’m an optimist. I’m not quite on the level of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry and his utopian view of the future, but I do believe that our future lies beyond our little blue-green marble.