A Question of Ethics - Erin Howard (2023

By Erin Howard

Space travel seems to be both exhilarating and intimidating. The idea of leaving Earth and even seeing Earth from a different vantage point can bring a rush of adrenaline and the feeling of weightlessness. However, the heaviness of knowing that there are an infinite number of possibilities for failure or success can bring lofty emotions back down to reality. As for scientists, astronauts, and anyone involved in space exploration, it is nearly impossible to cover every scenario that could occur while in space. Because of this, the importance of scenario planning before missions determines the likeliness of success. The purpose of this expository essay is to outline, evaluate, and come to a reasonable conclusion about where ethics stand in the search for life and answers. This essay will first use the example of a past mission to examine proposed protocols. It will then do an in-depth introduction to five primary protocols that should be required for space exploration. Finally, concluding with a statement about the future of ethical space exploration.

Past missions are essential in many ways; they offer lessons and a way to compare and examine future missions expected to serve a similar purpose. Preliminary efforts require crew members to do a comprehensive review of critical elements, sign agreements, and participate in substantial training. The degree of thoroughness of planning for mission preparation is immense and described as mind-boggling. By the end of pre-launch operations and planning, astronauts have been fully immersed in the environment they are to face.

There have been many engineering case studies of The Challenger Disaster. In his publication of Engineering Ethics Case Study: The Challenger Disaster, Mark Rossow covered the retrospective fallacy and the troubles with NASA risk-taking. The main question considered in the text was if calculating the costs and benefits of the program was a component that the NASA managers took seriously under the unsafe conditions already known.

“But if something went wrong with a launch, the probability of detection was 100%. The manager’s career would be finished, and he might face criminal charges. Adding this cost to the cost—in moral terms—of the death of the crew and the cost of suspension of the entire program for many months or even years would give a total cost so large that any rational manager would have judged the risk too far outweigh the reward” (Rossow, 2015.) Rossow suggests that ethical concerns reach beyond those on board and charge those applying too much pressure to mission programs. It is essential to consider the long-term effects of excessive ambition that could severely damage people and things. The second question was along the lines of the principle of informed consent. The key to participation in experiments is to obtain informed consent from test subjects. The research found that NASA did not provide crew members of the Challenger the knowledge to make an informed decision on potential risks. “The second requirement—that the crew had enough information to decide if they wanted to risk launch—does not appear to have been met” he continues, “But even if they 32 had been told of the teleconference, it is difficult to see how they could have made a reasonable decision about launching” (Rossow, 2015).

The NASA engineers told information about ice forming on the launch pad as the members were idle on the launch pad; however, questioning launch safety only a few hours before takeoff makes what is being described seem futile. Each characteristic of judgments made in space exploration programs must exceed predicted outcomes and always bring technical and emotional success and confidence.

Primary space exploration protocols assure safety & security for many. All private and public space corporations must be committed to meeting each for every mission carried out. These protocols include four categories, informed consent, communications, the potential for harm, and moral agency. Informed consent applies both on and off spacecraft. These are things we as people deal with every day of our lives. Informed consent builds upon a foundation of trust and patient autonomy when dealing with research (Murphy, 2008). Informed consent can count as communication, another protocol needed in space exploration. Communication is effective when the means of collaboration and innovation are articulated well. Hence, research findings support a greater relevance and impact (Sciendo, 2020). Lastly, moral agency is the ethical obligation entities have towards moral subjects (Rummel, 2017). It promotes all people to a moral responsibility not to cause unjustified harm. A protocol such as this enables accountability and merit for all.

It is nearly impossible to cover every scenario that could occur while in space. Therefore, the likeliness of success is dependent on scenario planning before missions. Disasters and mistakes in space exploration are only lessons learned. Remembering that we are all only humans shows that much sacrifice will have to be made when advancing outside Earth.

References

Cedengineering.Com. https://www.cedengineering.com/userfiles/Engineering%20Ethics% 20Case%20Study%20The%20Challenger%20Disaster%20R1.pdf. (2022). Retrieved 9 January 2022, from https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Shared%20Documents/conferences/20 17-business-and-economics-of-space/John%20Rummel.pdf Murphy, J. (2008). Benefits and Challenges of Informed Consent. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 83(3), 272-273. doi: 10.4065/83.3.272 The power and benefits of effective science communication | Sciendo. (2020). Retrieved 9 January 2022, from https://sciendo.com/news/the-power-and-benefits-of-effective-scien ce-communication