Why would a group of non-astronauts be sent on a space mission?












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Question (inspired by this question, and of course the 1998 classic Armageddon)



Is there a conceivable reason that NASA or any equivalent space agency (ESA, Roscosmos, etc.) would need to send non-astronauts into space? It seems that for almost any mission, astronauts could be instructed on how to complete the necessary task beforehand or remotely. If not, machinery could also be operated remotely. Lastly, for planned missions (e.g. Mars), civilians with requisite credentials (e.g. Geology PhD) could be selected for astronaut training well ahead of time. In what situation would a non-astronaut of any expertise (or lack thereof) be required to personally accompany a mission.



Specifications



The time period to consider is near past to near future, implying that the only people trained to go to space are astronauts and the odd paying tourist. The technology level to consider spans the same time period (think shuttle era to ISS to Deep Space Gateway/Lunar/Martian missions. Any length of mission preparation up to the actual length of astronaut training (~2 years) is acceptable.



Criteria



You can invent any wild scenario to justify this (obviously "all the astronauts just got pink eye and the Hubble needs a bath" is a bit out of left field but hey go wild). If multiple valid scenarios are proposed, the most realistic/probable one will be the correct one. More weight will be given to the need to send non-astronauts than the want (e.g. sending scientists to do a sciencey thing rather than sending politicians for a P.R. opportunity).










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  • 1




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    You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
    $endgroup$
    – KerrAvon2055
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Great point, edited to reflect that.
    $endgroup$
    – ben
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
    $endgroup$
    – Thorne
    4 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
    $endgroup$
    – Tim B II
    4 hours ago






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    8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
    $endgroup$
    – Willk
    1 hour ago
















1












$begingroup$


Question (inspired by this question, and of course the 1998 classic Armageddon)



Is there a conceivable reason that NASA or any equivalent space agency (ESA, Roscosmos, etc.) would need to send non-astronauts into space? It seems that for almost any mission, astronauts could be instructed on how to complete the necessary task beforehand or remotely. If not, machinery could also be operated remotely. Lastly, for planned missions (e.g. Mars), civilians with requisite credentials (e.g. Geology PhD) could be selected for astronaut training well ahead of time. In what situation would a non-astronaut of any expertise (or lack thereof) be required to personally accompany a mission.



Specifications



The time period to consider is near past to near future, implying that the only people trained to go to space are astronauts and the odd paying tourist. The technology level to consider spans the same time period (think shuttle era to ISS to Deep Space Gateway/Lunar/Martian missions. Any length of mission preparation up to the actual length of astronaut training (~2 years) is acceptable.



Criteria



You can invent any wild scenario to justify this (obviously "all the astronauts just got pink eye and the Hubble needs a bath" is a bit out of left field but hey go wild). If multiple valid scenarios are proposed, the most realistic/probable one will be the correct one. More weight will be given to the need to send non-astronauts than the want (e.g. sending scientists to do a sciencey thing rather than sending politicians for a P.R. opportunity).










share|improve this question











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  • 1




    $begingroup$
    You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
    $endgroup$
    – KerrAvon2055
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Great point, edited to reflect that.
    $endgroup$
    – ben
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
    $endgroup$
    – Thorne
    4 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
    $endgroup$
    – Tim B II
    4 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
    $endgroup$
    – Willk
    1 hour ago














1












1








1





$begingroup$


Question (inspired by this question, and of course the 1998 classic Armageddon)



Is there a conceivable reason that NASA or any equivalent space agency (ESA, Roscosmos, etc.) would need to send non-astronauts into space? It seems that for almost any mission, astronauts could be instructed on how to complete the necessary task beforehand or remotely. If not, machinery could also be operated remotely. Lastly, for planned missions (e.g. Mars), civilians with requisite credentials (e.g. Geology PhD) could be selected for astronaut training well ahead of time. In what situation would a non-astronaut of any expertise (or lack thereof) be required to personally accompany a mission.



Specifications



The time period to consider is near past to near future, implying that the only people trained to go to space are astronauts and the odd paying tourist. The technology level to consider spans the same time period (think shuttle era to ISS to Deep Space Gateway/Lunar/Martian missions. Any length of mission preparation up to the actual length of astronaut training (~2 years) is acceptable.



Criteria



You can invent any wild scenario to justify this (obviously "all the astronauts just got pink eye and the Hubble needs a bath" is a bit out of left field but hey go wild). If multiple valid scenarios are proposed, the most realistic/probable one will be the correct one. More weight will be given to the need to send non-astronauts than the want (e.g. sending scientists to do a sciencey thing rather than sending politicians for a P.R. opportunity).










share|improve this question











$endgroup$




Question (inspired by this question, and of course the 1998 classic Armageddon)



Is there a conceivable reason that NASA or any equivalent space agency (ESA, Roscosmos, etc.) would need to send non-astronauts into space? It seems that for almost any mission, astronauts could be instructed on how to complete the necessary task beforehand or remotely. If not, machinery could also be operated remotely. Lastly, for planned missions (e.g. Mars), civilians with requisite credentials (e.g. Geology PhD) could be selected for astronaut training well ahead of time. In what situation would a non-astronaut of any expertise (or lack thereof) be required to personally accompany a mission.



Specifications



The time period to consider is near past to near future, implying that the only people trained to go to space are astronauts and the odd paying tourist. The technology level to consider spans the same time period (think shuttle era to ISS to Deep Space Gateway/Lunar/Martian missions. Any length of mission preparation up to the actual length of astronaut training (~2 years) is acceptable.



Criteria



You can invent any wild scenario to justify this (obviously "all the astronauts just got pink eye and the Hubble needs a bath" is a bit out of left field but hey go wild). If multiple valid scenarios are proposed, the most realistic/probable one will be the correct one. More weight will be given to the need to send non-astronauts than the want (e.g. sending scientists to do a sciencey thing rather than sending politicians for a P.R. opportunity).







reality-check space-travel astronaut






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share|improve this question








edited 4 hours ago







ben

















asked 5 hours ago









benben

3826




3826








  • 1




    $begingroup$
    You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
    $endgroup$
    – KerrAvon2055
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Great point, edited to reflect that.
    $endgroup$
    – ben
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
    $endgroup$
    – Thorne
    4 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
    $endgroup$
    – Tim B II
    4 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
    $endgroup$
    – Willk
    1 hour ago














  • 1




    $begingroup$
    You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
    $endgroup$
    – KerrAvon2055
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    Great point, edited to reflect that.
    $endgroup$
    – ben
    4 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
    $endgroup$
    – Thorne
    4 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
    $endgroup$
    – Tim B II
    4 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
    $endgroup$
    – Willk
    1 hour ago








1




1




$begingroup$
You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
$endgroup$
– KerrAvon2055
4 hours ago




$begingroup$
You may want to tighten up the mission preparation timeframes - given that it takes 2 years to train an astronaut (NASA), any timeframe of 2 years or longer lets non-astronauts become astronauts.
$endgroup$
– KerrAvon2055
4 hours ago












$begingroup$
Great point, edited to reflect that.
$endgroup$
– ben
4 hours ago




$begingroup$
Great point, edited to reflect that.
$endgroup$
– ben
4 hours ago












$begingroup$
The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
$endgroup$
– Thorne
4 hours ago




$begingroup$
The world just got sick of the Kardasians......
$endgroup$
– Thorne
4 hours ago




2




2




$begingroup$
We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
$endgroup$
– Tim B II
4 hours ago




$begingroup$
We should snapshot this question in its current form as it may be the only time in history that the movie Armageddon ever gets labeled a 'classic'.
$endgroup$
– Tim B II
4 hours ago




1




1




$begingroup$
8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
$endgroup$
– Willk
1 hour ago




$begingroup$
8 answers and no upvotes! Come on you all! If it is good enough to write an answer it is good enough to upvote.
$endgroup$
– Willk
1 hour ago










8 Answers
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Payload specialists were regularly flown by NASA until Columbia disaster. Payload specialists are not career astronauts and receive less rigorous training (not sure how less rigorous, but definitely shorter than 2 years).



The idea behind the specialists is that for a number of jobs it is easier to train a civilian to fly in space than to train astronaut to perform the job on the same level as that civilian specialist do. for example, if we want to take "fine art" photographs from space, we need to send out a civilian photographer rather than give career astronaut a top-level camera and tell him which buttons to push.






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    To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
    $endgroup$
    – Shadowzee
    1 hour ago



















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Alien's have encircled the Earth and demand to meet our leaders, or we meet our demise. They have read our communications so there is no hope in fooling them by sending the wrong people. Our only choice (maybe) is to send presidents/foreign diplomats/leaders into space with little time to train.






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pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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    Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
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It's not the skill that's needed, it's the people themselves



Maybe the people have a rare genetic condition/blood group/other physical property that make them uniquely suited to the task at hand. Maybe a catastrophe is about to befall Earth, and it's determined that stashing some VIPs (high level politicians, important scientists, etc) on the ISS is the best chance to keep these people alive.



You need a lot of people



Maybe you're planning the colonization of, say, Mars, or more generally you need to (again) evacuate Earth. Now you're not going to get everyone out obviously, but you still want the most amount of people, and the most diverse group too. So either there will be more people needed than there are trained astronauts, or the diversity requirement will mean that most of the participants will be non-professionals.






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    Celebrity Big Brother IN SPACE!!.



    In an effort to stir up public appreciation (and continued taxpayer dollars) NASA sends up a group of celebrities and then films their inept but charming hijinks aboard the space station! Celebrities in space turn out to be surprisingly competent, incontinent, sexy, grumpy, intelligent and profoundly annoying. It is the best TV ever.



    The public cannot wait to send another rocketload up for the next season, and this time, the Chinese want in too!






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      And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
      $endgroup$
      – Thorne
      3 hours ago



















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    Similar to pwaivers answer, but crazier (and absolutely NOT inspired by Space Jam) :)



    Aliens have circled the Earth and are ready to conquer the planet. But they have to follow a particular chivalric code in invading planets, so they must give a chance to the populations they are about to invade.

    They decide to organize a match of [insert your favourite sport here(1)], the team of humans against a team of invading aliens, on neutral ground. If the aliens win, mankind will be enslaved, if the human team wins, the aliens will leave the Earth.

    The have set up a dome orbiting around the moon, where there is a gravity similar to Earth's and the match will be played, so we must send the best players of the chosen sport into space, to play a game that will decide the fate of mankind!



    (1) if the alien players look like the xenomorphs, probably chess or bridge would be a safe bet






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      Budget Cuts



      Space is expensive. NASA and other government equivalents cost a significant amount of taxpayer money to fund and NASA in particular after the cold war and the shuttle era are in a constant battle to publicise their relevance to the modern world and particularly to the Americans that fund it.



      During the Cold War, this wasn't so much a problem because the government actually WANTED to have a thriving space program to demonstrate that they were equal to or better than the Eastern Bloc when it came to scientific advancements and in particular, space. But, the Cold War ended, and the shuttle era saw NASA shift to supporting a lot of industry in space as much as scientific research. Just take a look at some of the shuttle missions and you'll see that a number of them were for things like communication satellites, which meant that the shuttles had at least some commercial value.



      Since then, I've noticed a subtle change in the articles in my NASA news subscription feed. They're about 1/3 Mars stories, 1/3 rest of the solar system, and 1/3 Earth imaging or climate change style articles. Why this latter group? Because the money has to be relevant to the people funding it in these times, and NASA has gone from a secretive cold war artefact designing Saturn V rockets to a public domain organisation justifying its existence to a taxpayer who is increasingly indifferent about Mars and the other planets.



      I'm not saying any of this to push an agenda, simply to point out that in such circumstances it's conceivable that one government or another in the future will either severely cut or kill off completely the NASA budget. But, they still have things they want to do. How do you do things without a government budget?



      You go commercial.



      Privatisation has been proceeding apace in many countries for decades. Australia has been seeing it wholesale since the 1970s, for instance. Even NASA during the shuttle era were taking on commercial payloads and that may well continue without a shuttle fleet, but not on a scale that can pay for the science agenda. BUT, space tourism might.



      So, you privatise NASA as a space tourism country with decades more experience than SpaceX or any other startup. You continue to run your space missions, but with a 50% trained crew and 50% passengers, who pay more than double the actual cost of their seat, funding the entire mission.



      Sure, that means it's awkward getting those classified payloads in place with all the iPhones taking pictures of it out the windows, but then if you really cared about such things, you wouldn't privatise NASA in the first place, right?



      Right?






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        Types of scenarios



        Astronauts are selected to be the best and brightest. Many have military backgrounds, all have some type of science training (from their astronaut training if nothing else), all have university level degrees. They are also trained to operate in zero-G, which means that even if they are not the best at a given skill they may be better able to use that skill in a zero-G environment compared to a dirtside expert. For example, a specialist brain surgeon is doubtless better at brain surgery than a NASA generalist physician when operating on Earth, but the astronaut may be better at brain surgery in free fall simply because the specialist surgeon has no idea of how to operate in that environment. So any physical skillset is unlikely to make anyone a preferred choice compared to a trained astronaut.



        Looking beyond physical skillsets to knowledge, even if no astronaut has expert knowledge in a particular subject, telepresence and remote operation allow for expertise to be provided from Earth without the physical presence of an expert. For example, if an alien ship with Egyptian symbols on the outside came tumbling past Earth, NASA would send up trained astronauts (including anyone who took archaeology as a minor subject in college) and have a battery of Egyptologists in mission control to translate the footage sent back.



        Knowledge skills have some potential if telepresence is not possible. If a mission is required to operate under strict emissions control for an intelligence-gathering or special forces action then it might be that having a trained mimic who speaks colloquial Icelandic could be critical to infiltrating a space station to stop Dr Evil's nefarious scheme. Given the difficulty of being stealthy in space (and the unlikelihood of anyone allowing Dr Evil to build his space station in the first place), this is an extremely far-fetched scenario.



        A slightly more plausible option is a "dying wish" type scenario. Billionaire CEO and astronaut John Smith has been critically injured in an accident on his company's newly built private space station in Earth orbit and will die in a few weeks. John Smith's injuries are such that he cannot survive returning to Earth. Jane Smith is sent up on the next resupply flight to be with her dying husband when he passes. While this is not strictly a must send an untrained person to orbit scenario, it is possibly plausible for near future.



        Finally, going clean into fantasy realms, putting together Timst's answer and Thorne's comment about getting rid of the Kardashians - maybe it is the safest place to put someone. A person develops telepathic powers that they can't control and their radius of effect is increasing. They are innocent (and potentially very valuable when/if their powers are understood but it will soon be unsafe for anyone to be within a 10,000 km radius. Instead of killing them, stick them in a space station in geostationary orbit and do not route any manned missions within the danger radius.






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          Money, notoriety, political grease... You know, the stuff that makes the world go 'round



          If Senator Jake Garn's famous flight into space proved anything, it's that all you need to go to space is clout.



          Clout comes in many forms. When we're young, sticks and taunts tend to be sufficient clout. As we get older, more sophisticated forms of clout come into play like money and keeping pictures of your boss golfing with Satan locked in a safe deposit box. People such as industrialists like Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Politicians like Jake Garn, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, musicians like Justin Bieber.



          There are oh, so many impractical reasons for space agencies like NASA to send people into space. And don't believe for a moment that after Virgin Galactic and SpaceX send the first tourists into space that NASA won't get on board — if only for the additional funding.






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            8 Answers
            8






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            8 Answers
            8






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            $begingroup$

            Payload specialists were regularly flown by NASA until Columbia disaster. Payload specialists are not career astronauts and receive less rigorous training (not sure how less rigorous, but definitely shorter than 2 years).



            The idea behind the specialists is that for a number of jobs it is easier to train a civilian to fly in space than to train astronaut to perform the job on the same level as that civilian specialist do. for example, if we want to take "fine art" photographs from space, we need to send out a civilian photographer rather than give career astronaut a top-level camera and tell him which buttons to push.






            share|improve this answer









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            • 1




              $begingroup$
              To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
              $endgroup$
              – Shadowzee
              1 hour ago
















            4












            $begingroup$

            Payload specialists were regularly flown by NASA until Columbia disaster. Payload specialists are not career astronauts and receive less rigorous training (not sure how less rigorous, but definitely shorter than 2 years).



            The idea behind the specialists is that for a number of jobs it is easier to train a civilian to fly in space than to train astronaut to perform the job on the same level as that civilian specialist do. for example, if we want to take "fine art" photographs from space, we need to send out a civilian photographer rather than give career astronaut a top-level camera and tell him which buttons to push.






            share|improve this answer









            $endgroup$









            • 1




              $begingroup$
              To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
              $endgroup$
              – Shadowzee
              1 hour ago














            4












            4








            4





            $begingroup$

            Payload specialists were regularly flown by NASA until Columbia disaster. Payload specialists are not career astronauts and receive less rigorous training (not sure how less rigorous, but definitely shorter than 2 years).



            The idea behind the specialists is that for a number of jobs it is easier to train a civilian to fly in space than to train astronaut to perform the job on the same level as that civilian specialist do. for example, if we want to take "fine art" photographs from space, we need to send out a civilian photographer rather than give career astronaut a top-level camera and tell him which buttons to push.






            share|improve this answer









            $endgroup$



            Payload specialists were regularly flown by NASA until Columbia disaster. Payload specialists are not career astronauts and receive less rigorous training (not sure how less rigorous, but definitely shorter than 2 years).



            The idea behind the specialists is that for a number of jobs it is easier to train a civilian to fly in space than to train astronaut to perform the job on the same level as that civilian specialist do. for example, if we want to take "fine art" photographs from space, we need to send out a civilian photographer rather than give career astronaut a top-level camera and tell him which buttons to push.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered 4 hours ago









            AlexanderAlexander

            20.2k53377




            20.2k53377








            • 1




              $begingroup$
              To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
              $endgroup$
              – Shadowzee
              1 hour ago














            • 1




              $begingroup$
              To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
              $endgroup$
              – Shadowzee
              1 hour ago








            1




            1




            $begingroup$
            To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
            $endgroup$
            – Shadowzee
            1 hour ago




            $begingroup$
            To add to this answer, remote operation doesn't always work because of the Lag between sending a signal and receiving feed back from the action. To communicate with mars, it can take between 4 to 24 minutes which is too long for anything to be precisely and controlled quickly and accurately.
            $endgroup$
            – Shadowzee
            1 hour ago











            1












            $begingroup$

            Alien's have encircled the Earth and demand to meet our leaders, or we meet our demise. They have read our communications so there is no hope in fooling them by sending the wrong people. Our only choice (maybe) is to send presidents/foreign diplomats/leaders into space with little time to train.






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.






            $endgroup$













            • $begingroup$
              Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
              $endgroup$
              – Gryphon
              4 hours ago
















            1












            $begingroup$

            Alien's have encircled the Earth and demand to meet our leaders, or we meet our demise. They have read our communications so there is no hope in fooling them by sending the wrong people. Our only choice (maybe) is to send presidents/foreign diplomats/leaders into space with little time to train.






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.






            $endgroup$













            • $begingroup$
              Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
              $endgroup$
              – Gryphon
              4 hours ago














            1












            1








            1





            $begingroup$

            Alien's have encircled the Earth and demand to meet our leaders, or we meet our demise. They have read our communications so there is no hope in fooling them by sending the wrong people. Our only choice (maybe) is to send presidents/foreign diplomats/leaders into space with little time to train.






            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.






            $endgroup$



            Alien's have encircled the Earth and demand to meet our leaders, or we meet our demise. They have read our communications so there is no hope in fooling them by sending the wrong people. Our only choice (maybe) is to send presidents/foreign diplomats/leaders into space with little time to train.







            share|improve this answer








            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.









            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer






            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.









            answered 4 hours ago









            pwaiverspwaivers

            111




            111




            New contributor




            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.





            New contributor





            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.






            pwaivers is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
            Check out our Code of Conduct.












            • $begingroup$
              Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
              $endgroup$
              – Gryphon
              4 hours ago


















            • $begingroup$
              Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
              $endgroup$
              – Gryphon
              4 hours ago
















            $begingroup$
            Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
            $endgroup$
            – Gryphon
            4 hours ago




            $begingroup$
            Welcome to Worldbuilding, pwaivers! If you have a moment, please take the tour and visit the help center to learn more about the site. You may also find Worldbuilding Meta and The Sandbox useful. Here is a meta post on the culture and style of Worldbuilding.SE, just to help you understand our scope and methods, and how we do things here. Have fun!
            $endgroup$
            – Gryphon
            4 hours ago











            1












            $begingroup$

            It's not the skill that's needed, it's the people themselves



            Maybe the people have a rare genetic condition/blood group/other physical property that make them uniquely suited to the task at hand. Maybe a catastrophe is about to befall Earth, and it's determined that stashing some VIPs (high level politicians, important scientists, etc) on the ISS is the best chance to keep these people alive.



            You need a lot of people



            Maybe you're planning the colonization of, say, Mars, or more generally you need to (again) evacuate Earth. Now you're not going to get everyone out obviously, but you still want the most amount of people, and the most diverse group too. So either there will be more people needed than there are trained astronauts, or the diversity requirement will mean that most of the participants will be non-professionals.






            share|improve this answer









            $endgroup$


















              1












              $begingroup$

              It's not the skill that's needed, it's the people themselves



              Maybe the people have a rare genetic condition/blood group/other physical property that make them uniquely suited to the task at hand. Maybe a catastrophe is about to befall Earth, and it's determined that stashing some VIPs (high level politicians, important scientists, etc) on the ISS is the best chance to keep these people alive.



              You need a lot of people



              Maybe you're planning the colonization of, say, Mars, or more generally you need to (again) evacuate Earth. Now you're not going to get everyone out obviously, but you still want the most amount of people, and the most diverse group too. So either there will be more people needed than there are trained astronauts, or the diversity requirement will mean that most of the participants will be non-professionals.






              share|improve this answer









              $endgroup$
















                1












                1








                1





                $begingroup$

                It's not the skill that's needed, it's the people themselves



                Maybe the people have a rare genetic condition/blood group/other physical property that make them uniquely suited to the task at hand. Maybe a catastrophe is about to befall Earth, and it's determined that stashing some VIPs (high level politicians, important scientists, etc) on the ISS is the best chance to keep these people alive.



                You need a lot of people



                Maybe you're planning the colonization of, say, Mars, or more generally you need to (again) evacuate Earth. Now you're not going to get everyone out obviously, but you still want the most amount of people, and the most diverse group too. So either there will be more people needed than there are trained astronauts, or the diversity requirement will mean that most of the participants will be non-professionals.






                share|improve this answer









                $endgroup$



                It's not the skill that's needed, it's the people themselves



                Maybe the people have a rare genetic condition/blood group/other physical property that make them uniquely suited to the task at hand. Maybe a catastrophe is about to befall Earth, and it's determined that stashing some VIPs (high level politicians, important scientists, etc) on the ISS is the best chance to keep these people alive.



                You need a lot of people



                Maybe you're planning the colonization of, say, Mars, or more generally you need to (again) evacuate Earth. Now you're not going to get everyone out obviously, but you still want the most amount of people, and the most diverse group too. So either there will be more people needed than there are trained astronauts, or the diversity requirement will mean that most of the participants will be non-professionals.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered 4 hours ago









                TimstTimst

                418146




                418146























                    1












                    $begingroup$

                    Celebrity Big Brother IN SPACE!!.



                    In an effort to stir up public appreciation (and continued taxpayer dollars) NASA sends up a group of celebrities and then films their inept but charming hijinks aboard the space station! Celebrities in space turn out to be surprisingly competent, incontinent, sexy, grumpy, intelligent and profoundly annoying. It is the best TV ever.



                    The public cannot wait to send another rocketload up for the next season, and this time, the Chinese want in too!






                    share|improve this answer









                    $endgroup$









                    • 3




                      $begingroup$
                      And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                      $endgroup$
                      – Thorne
                      3 hours ago
















                    1












                    $begingroup$

                    Celebrity Big Brother IN SPACE!!.



                    In an effort to stir up public appreciation (and continued taxpayer dollars) NASA sends up a group of celebrities and then films their inept but charming hijinks aboard the space station! Celebrities in space turn out to be surprisingly competent, incontinent, sexy, grumpy, intelligent and profoundly annoying. It is the best TV ever.



                    The public cannot wait to send another rocketload up for the next season, and this time, the Chinese want in too!






                    share|improve this answer









                    $endgroup$









                    • 3




                      $begingroup$
                      And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                      $endgroup$
                      – Thorne
                      3 hours ago














                    1












                    1








                    1





                    $begingroup$

                    Celebrity Big Brother IN SPACE!!.



                    In an effort to stir up public appreciation (and continued taxpayer dollars) NASA sends up a group of celebrities and then films their inept but charming hijinks aboard the space station! Celebrities in space turn out to be surprisingly competent, incontinent, sexy, grumpy, intelligent and profoundly annoying. It is the best TV ever.



                    The public cannot wait to send another rocketload up for the next season, and this time, the Chinese want in too!






                    share|improve this answer









                    $endgroup$



                    Celebrity Big Brother IN SPACE!!.



                    In an effort to stir up public appreciation (and continued taxpayer dollars) NASA sends up a group of celebrities and then films their inept but charming hijinks aboard the space station! Celebrities in space turn out to be surprisingly competent, incontinent, sexy, grumpy, intelligent and profoundly annoying. It is the best TV ever.



                    The public cannot wait to send another rocketload up for the next season, and this time, the Chinese want in too!







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 4 hours ago









                    WillkWillk

                    106k26199445




                    106k26199445








                    • 3




                      $begingroup$
                      And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                      $endgroup$
                      – Thorne
                      3 hours ago














                    • 3




                      $begingroup$
                      And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                      $endgroup$
                      – Thorne
                      3 hours ago








                    3




                    3




                    $begingroup$
                    And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                    $endgroup$
                    – Thorne
                    3 hours ago




                    $begingroup$
                    And when they get voted out, it's out the airlock.......
                    $endgroup$
                    – Thorne
                    3 hours ago











                    0












                    $begingroup$

                    Similar to pwaivers answer, but crazier (and absolutely NOT inspired by Space Jam) :)



                    Aliens have circled the Earth and are ready to conquer the planet. But they have to follow a particular chivalric code in invading planets, so they must give a chance to the populations they are about to invade.

                    They decide to organize a match of [insert your favourite sport here(1)], the team of humans against a team of invading aliens, on neutral ground. If the aliens win, mankind will be enslaved, if the human team wins, the aliens will leave the Earth.

                    The have set up a dome orbiting around the moon, where there is a gravity similar to Earth's and the match will be played, so we must send the best players of the chosen sport into space, to play a game that will decide the fate of mankind!



                    (1) if the alien players look like the xenomorphs, probably chess or bridge would be a safe bet






                    share|improve this answer









                    $endgroup$


















                      0












                      $begingroup$

                      Similar to pwaivers answer, but crazier (and absolutely NOT inspired by Space Jam) :)



                      Aliens have circled the Earth and are ready to conquer the planet. But they have to follow a particular chivalric code in invading planets, so they must give a chance to the populations they are about to invade.

                      They decide to organize a match of [insert your favourite sport here(1)], the team of humans against a team of invading aliens, on neutral ground. If the aliens win, mankind will be enslaved, if the human team wins, the aliens will leave the Earth.

                      The have set up a dome orbiting around the moon, where there is a gravity similar to Earth's and the match will be played, so we must send the best players of the chosen sport into space, to play a game that will decide the fate of mankind!



                      (1) if the alien players look like the xenomorphs, probably chess or bridge would be a safe bet






                      share|improve this answer









                      $endgroup$
















                        0












                        0








                        0





                        $begingroup$

                        Similar to pwaivers answer, but crazier (and absolutely NOT inspired by Space Jam) :)



                        Aliens have circled the Earth and are ready to conquer the planet. But they have to follow a particular chivalric code in invading planets, so they must give a chance to the populations they are about to invade.

                        They decide to organize a match of [insert your favourite sport here(1)], the team of humans against a team of invading aliens, on neutral ground. If the aliens win, mankind will be enslaved, if the human team wins, the aliens will leave the Earth.

                        The have set up a dome orbiting around the moon, where there is a gravity similar to Earth's and the match will be played, so we must send the best players of the chosen sport into space, to play a game that will decide the fate of mankind!



                        (1) if the alien players look like the xenomorphs, probably chess or bridge would be a safe bet






                        share|improve this answer









                        $endgroup$



                        Similar to pwaivers answer, but crazier (and absolutely NOT inspired by Space Jam) :)



                        Aliens have circled the Earth and are ready to conquer the planet. But they have to follow a particular chivalric code in invading planets, so they must give a chance to the populations they are about to invade.

                        They decide to organize a match of [insert your favourite sport here(1)], the team of humans against a team of invading aliens, on neutral ground. If the aliens win, mankind will be enslaved, if the human team wins, the aliens will leave the Earth.

                        The have set up a dome orbiting around the moon, where there is a gravity similar to Earth's and the match will be played, so we must send the best players of the chosen sport into space, to play a game that will decide the fate of mankind!



                        (1) if the alien players look like the xenomorphs, probably chess or bridge would be a safe bet







                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered 4 hours ago









                        McTroopersMcTroopers

                        4194




                        4194























                            0












                            $begingroup$

                            Budget Cuts



                            Space is expensive. NASA and other government equivalents cost a significant amount of taxpayer money to fund and NASA in particular after the cold war and the shuttle era are in a constant battle to publicise their relevance to the modern world and particularly to the Americans that fund it.



                            During the Cold War, this wasn't so much a problem because the government actually WANTED to have a thriving space program to demonstrate that they were equal to or better than the Eastern Bloc when it came to scientific advancements and in particular, space. But, the Cold War ended, and the shuttle era saw NASA shift to supporting a lot of industry in space as much as scientific research. Just take a look at some of the shuttle missions and you'll see that a number of them were for things like communication satellites, which meant that the shuttles had at least some commercial value.



                            Since then, I've noticed a subtle change in the articles in my NASA news subscription feed. They're about 1/3 Mars stories, 1/3 rest of the solar system, and 1/3 Earth imaging or climate change style articles. Why this latter group? Because the money has to be relevant to the people funding it in these times, and NASA has gone from a secretive cold war artefact designing Saturn V rockets to a public domain organisation justifying its existence to a taxpayer who is increasingly indifferent about Mars and the other planets.



                            I'm not saying any of this to push an agenda, simply to point out that in such circumstances it's conceivable that one government or another in the future will either severely cut or kill off completely the NASA budget. But, they still have things they want to do. How do you do things without a government budget?



                            You go commercial.



                            Privatisation has been proceeding apace in many countries for decades. Australia has been seeing it wholesale since the 1970s, for instance. Even NASA during the shuttle era were taking on commercial payloads and that may well continue without a shuttle fleet, but not on a scale that can pay for the science agenda. BUT, space tourism might.



                            So, you privatise NASA as a space tourism country with decades more experience than SpaceX or any other startup. You continue to run your space missions, but with a 50% trained crew and 50% passengers, who pay more than double the actual cost of their seat, funding the entire mission.



                            Sure, that means it's awkward getting those classified payloads in place with all the iPhones taking pictures of it out the windows, but then if you really cared about such things, you wouldn't privatise NASA in the first place, right?



                            Right?






                            share|improve this answer









                            $endgroup$


















                              0












                              $begingroup$

                              Budget Cuts



                              Space is expensive. NASA and other government equivalents cost a significant amount of taxpayer money to fund and NASA in particular after the cold war and the shuttle era are in a constant battle to publicise their relevance to the modern world and particularly to the Americans that fund it.



                              During the Cold War, this wasn't so much a problem because the government actually WANTED to have a thriving space program to demonstrate that they were equal to or better than the Eastern Bloc when it came to scientific advancements and in particular, space. But, the Cold War ended, and the shuttle era saw NASA shift to supporting a lot of industry in space as much as scientific research. Just take a look at some of the shuttle missions and you'll see that a number of them were for things like communication satellites, which meant that the shuttles had at least some commercial value.



                              Since then, I've noticed a subtle change in the articles in my NASA news subscription feed. They're about 1/3 Mars stories, 1/3 rest of the solar system, and 1/3 Earth imaging or climate change style articles. Why this latter group? Because the money has to be relevant to the people funding it in these times, and NASA has gone from a secretive cold war artefact designing Saturn V rockets to a public domain organisation justifying its existence to a taxpayer who is increasingly indifferent about Mars and the other planets.



                              I'm not saying any of this to push an agenda, simply to point out that in such circumstances it's conceivable that one government or another in the future will either severely cut or kill off completely the NASA budget. But, they still have things they want to do. How do you do things without a government budget?



                              You go commercial.



                              Privatisation has been proceeding apace in many countries for decades. Australia has been seeing it wholesale since the 1970s, for instance. Even NASA during the shuttle era were taking on commercial payloads and that may well continue without a shuttle fleet, but not on a scale that can pay for the science agenda. BUT, space tourism might.



                              So, you privatise NASA as a space tourism country with decades more experience than SpaceX or any other startup. You continue to run your space missions, but with a 50% trained crew and 50% passengers, who pay more than double the actual cost of their seat, funding the entire mission.



                              Sure, that means it's awkward getting those classified payloads in place with all the iPhones taking pictures of it out the windows, but then if you really cared about such things, you wouldn't privatise NASA in the first place, right?



                              Right?






                              share|improve this answer









                              $endgroup$
















                                0












                                0








                                0





                                $begingroup$

                                Budget Cuts



                                Space is expensive. NASA and other government equivalents cost a significant amount of taxpayer money to fund and NASA in particular after the cold war and the shuttle era are in a constant battle to publicise their relevance to the modern world and particularly to the Americans that fund it.



                                During the Cold War, this wasn't so much a problem because the government actually WANTED to have a thriving space program to demonstrate that they were equal to or better than the Eastern Bloc when it came to scientific advancements and in particular, space. But, the Cold War ended, and the shuttle era saw NASA shift to supporting a lot of industry in space as much as scientific research. Just take a look at some of the shuttle missions and you'll see that a number of them were for things like communication satellites, which meant that the shuttles had at least some commercial value.



                                Since then, I've noticed a subtle change in the articles in my NASA news subscription feed. They're about 1/3 Mars stories, 1/3 rest of the solar system, and 1/3 Earth imaging or climate change style articles. Why this latter group? Because the money has to be relevant to the people funding it in these times, and NASA has gone from a secretive cold war artefact designing Saturn V rockets to a public domain organisation justifying its existence to a taxpayer who is increasingly indifferent about Mars and the other planets.



                                I'm not saying any of this to push an agenda, simply to point out that in such circumstances it's conceivable that one government or another in the future will either severely cut or kill off completely the NASA budget. But, they still have things they want to do. How do you do things without a government budget?



                                You go commercial.



                                Privatisation has been proceeding apace in many countries for decades. Australia has been seeing it wholesale since the 1970s, for instance. Even NASA during the shuttle era were taking on commercial payloads and that may well continue without a shuttle fleet, but not on a scale that can pay for the science agenda. BUT, space tourism might.



                                So, you privatise NASA as a space tourism country with decades more experience than SpaceX or any other startup. You continue to run your space missions, but with a 50% trained crew and 50% passengers, who pay more than double the actual cost of their seat, funding the entire mission.



                                Sure, that means it's awkward getting those classified payloads in place with all the iPhones taking pictures of it out the windows, but then if you really cared about such things, you wouldn't privatise NASA in the first place, right?



                                Right?






                                share|improve this answer









                                $endgroup$



                                Budget Cuts



                                Space is expensive. NASA and other government equivalents cost a significant amount of taxpayer money to fund and NASA in particular after the cold war and the shuttle era are in a constant battle to publicise their relevance to the modern world and particularly to the Americans that fund it.



                                During the Cold War, this wasn't so much a problem because the government actually WANTED to have a thriving space program to demonstrate that they were equal to or better than the Eastern Bloc when it came to scientific advancements and in particular, space. But, the Cold War ended, and the shuttle era saw NASA shift to supporting a lot of industry in space as much as scientific research. Just take a look at some of the shuttle missions and you'll see that a number of them were for things like communication satellites, which meant that the shuttles had at least some commercial value.



                                Since then, I've noticed a subtle change in the articles in my NASA news subscription feed. They're about 1/3 Mars stories, 1/3 rest of the solar system, and 1/3 Earth imaging or climate change style articles. Why this latter group? Because the money has to be relevant to the people funding it in these times, and NASA has gone from a secretive cold war artefact designing Saturn V rockets to a public domain organisation justifying its existence to a taxpayer who is increasingly indifferent about Mars and the other planets.



                                I'm not saying any of this to push an agenda, simply to point out that in such circumstances it's conceivable that one government or another in the future will either severely cut or kill off completely the NASA budget. But, they still have things they want to do. How do you do things without a government budget?



                                You go commercial.



                                Privatisation has been proceeding apace in many countries for decades. Australia has been seeing it wholesale since the 1970s, for instance. Even NASA during the shuttle era were taking on commercial payloads and that may well continue without a shuttle fleet, but not on a scale that can pay for the science agenda. BUT, space tourism might.



                                So, you privatise NASA as a space tourism country with decades more experience than SpaceX or any other startup. You continue to run your space missions, but with a 50% trained crew and 50% passengers, who pay more than double the actual cost of their seat, funding the entire mission.



                                Sure, that means it's awkward getting those classified payloads in place with all the iPhones taking pictures of it out the windows, but then if you really cared about such things, you wouldn't privatise NASA in the first place, right?



                                Right?







                                share|improve this answer












                                share|improve this answer



                                share|improve this answer










                                answered 4 hours ago









                                Tim B IITim B II

                                28k661115




                                28k661115























                                    0












                                    $begingroup$

                                    Types of scenarios



                                    Astronauts are selected to be the best and brightest. Many have military backgrounds, all have some type of science training (from their astronaut training if nothing else), all have university level degrees. They are also trained to operate in zero-G, which means that even if they are not the best at a given skill they may be better able to use that skill in a zero-G environment compared to a dirtside expert. For example, a specialist brain surgeon is doubtless better at brain surgery than a NASA generalist physician when operating on Earth, but the astronaut may be better at brain surgery in free fall simply because the specialist surgeon has no idea of how to operate in that environment. So any physical skillset is unlikely to make anyone a preferred choice compared to a trained astronaut.



                                    Looking beyond physical skillsets to knowledge, even if no astronaut has expert knowledge in a particular subject, telepresence and remote operation allow for expertise to be provided from Earth without the physical presence of an expert. For example, if an alien ship with Egyptian symbols on the outside came tumbling past Earth, NASA would send up trained astronauts (including anyone who took archaeology as a minor subject in college) and have a battery of Egyptologists in mission control to translate the footage sent back.



                                    Knowledge skills have some potential if telepresence is not possible. If a mission is required to operate under strict emissions control for an intelligence-gathering or special forces action then it might be that having a trained mimic who speaks colloquial Icelandic could be critical to infiltrating a space station to stop Dr Evil's nefarious scheme. Given the difficulty of being stealthy in space (and the unlikelihood of anyone allowing Dr Evil to build his space station in the first place), this is an extremely far-fetched scenario.



                                    A slightly more plausible option is a "dying wish" type scenario. Billionaire CEO and astronaut John Smith has been critically injured in an accident on his company's newly built private space station in Earth orbit and will die in a few weeks. John Smith's injuries are such that he cannot survive returning to Earth. Jane Smith is sent up on the next resupply flight to be with her dying husband when he passes. While this is not strictly a must send an untrained person to orbit scenario, it is possibly plausible for near future.



                                    Finally, going clean into fantasy realms, putting together Timst's answer and Thorne's comment about getting rid of the Kardashians - maybe it is the safest place to put someone. A person develops telepathic powers that they can't control and their radius of effect is increasing. They are innocent (and potentially very valuable when/if their powers are understood but it will soon be unsafe for anyone to be within a 10,000 km radius. Instead of killing them, stick them in a space station in geostationary orbit and do not route any manned missions within the danger radius.






                                    share|improve this answer









                                    $endgroup$


















                                      0












                                      $begingroup$

                                      Types of scenarios



                                      Astronauts are selected to be the best and brightest. Many have military backgrounds, all have some type of science training (from their astronaut training if nothing else), all have university level degrees. They are also trained to operate in zero-G, which means that even if they are not the best at a given skill they may be better able to use that skill in a zero-G environment compared to a dirtside expert. For example, a specialist brain surgeon is doubtless better at brain surgery than a NASA generalist physician when operating on Earth, but the astronaut may be better at brain surgery in free fall simply because the specialist surgeon has no idea of how to operate in that environment. So any physical skillset is unlikely to make anyone a preferred choice compared to a trained astronaut.



                                      Looking beyond physical skillsets to knowledge, even if no astronaut has expert knowledge in a particular subject, telepresence and remote operation allow for expertise to be provided from Earth without the physical presence of an expert. For example, if an alien ship with Egyptian symbols on the outside came tumbling past Earth, NASA would send up trained astronauts (including anyone who took archaeology as a minor subject in college) and have a battery of Egyptologists in mission control to translate the footage sent back.



                                      Knowledge skills have some potential if telepresence is not possible. If a mission is required to operate under strict emissions control for an intelligence-gathering or special forces action then it might be that having a trained mimic who speaks colloquial Icelandic could be critical to infiltrating a space station to stop Dr Evil's nefarious scheme. Given the difficulty of being stealthy in space (and the unlikelihood of anyone allowing Dr Evil to build his space station in the first place), this is an extremely far-fetched scenario.



                                      A slightly more plausible option is a "dying wish" type scenario. Billionaire CEO and astronaut John Smith has been critically injured in an accident on his company's newly built private space station in Earth orbit and will die in a few weeks. John Smith's injuries are such that he cannot survive returning to Earth. Jane Smith is sent up on the next resupply flight to be with her dying husband when he passes. While this is not strictly a must send an untrained person to orbit scenario, it is possibly plausible for near future.



                                      Finally, going clean into fantasy realms, putting together Timst's answer and Thorne's comment about getting rid of the Kardashians - maybe it is the safest place to put someone. A person develops telepathic powers that they can't control and their radius of effect is increasing. They are innocent (and potentially very valuable when/if their powers are understood but it will soon be unsafe for anyone to be within a 10,000 km radius. Instead of killing them, stick them in a space station in geostationary orbit and do not route any manned missions within the danger radius.






                                      share|improve this answer









                                      $endgroup$
















                                        0












                                        0








                                        0





                                        $begingroup$

                                        Types of scenarios



                                        Astronauts are selected to be the best and brightest. Many have military backgrounds, all have some type of science training (from their astronaut training if nothing else), all have university level degrees. They are also trained to operate in zero-G, which means that even if they are not the best at a given skill they may be better able to use that skill in a zero-G environment compared to a dirtside expert. For example, a specialist brain surgeon is doubtless better at brain surgery than a NASA generalist physician when operating on Earth, but the astronaut may be better at brain surgery in free fall simply because the specialist surgeon has no idea of how to operate in that environment. So any physical skillset is unlikely to make anyone a preferred choice compared to a trained astronaut.



                                        Looking beyond physical skillsets to knowledge, even if no astronaut has expert knowledge in a particular subject, telepresence and remote operation allow for expertise to be provided from Earth without the physical presence of an expert. For example, if an alien ship with Egyptian symbols on the outside came tumbling past Earth, NASA would send up trained astronauts (including anyone who took archaeology as a minor subject in college) and have a battery of Egyptologists in mission control to translate the footage sent back.



                                        Knowledge skills have some potential if telepresence is not possible. If a mission is required to operate under strict emissions control for an intelligence-gathering or special forces action then it might be that having a trained mimic who speaks colloquial Icelandic could be critical to infiltrating a space station to stop Dr Evil's nefarious scheme. Given the difficulty of being stealthy in space (and the unlikelihood of anyone allowing Dr Evil to build his space station in the first place), this is an extremely far-fetched scenario.



                                        A slightly more plausible option is a "dying wish" type scenario. Billionaire CEO and astronaut John Smith has been critically injured in an accident on his company's newly built private space station in Earth orbit and will die in a few weeks. John Smith's injuries are such that he cannot survive returning to Earth. Jane Smith is sent up on the next resupply flight to be with her dying husband when he passes. While this is not strictly a must send an untrained person to orbit scenario, it is possibly plausible for near future.



                                        Finally, going clean into fantasy realms, putting together Timst's answer and Thorne's comment about getting rid of the Kardashians - maybe it is the safest place to put someone. A person develops telepathic powers that they can't control and their radius of effect is increasing. They are innocent (and potentially very valuable when/if their powers are understood but it will soon be unsafe for anyone to be within a 10,000 km radius. Instead of killing them, stick them in a space station in geostationary orbit and do not route any manned missions within the danger radius.






                                        share|improve this answer









                                        $endgroup$



                                        Types of scenarios



                                        Astronauts are selected to be the best and brightest. Many have military backgrounds, all have some type of science training (from their astronaut training if nothing else), all have university level degrees. They are also trained to operate in zero-G, which means that even if they are not the best at a given skill they may be better able to use that skill in a zero-G environment compared to a dirtside expert. For example, a specialist brain surgeon is doubtless better at brain surgery than a NASA generalist physician when operating on Earth, but the astronaut may be better at brain surgery in free fall simply because the specialist surgeon has no idea of how to operate in that environment. So any physical skillset is unlikely to make anyone a preferred choice compared to a trained astronaut.



                                        Looking beyond physical skillsets to knowledge, even if no astronaut has expert knowledge in a particular subject, telepresence and remote operation allow for expertise to be provided from Earth without the physical presence of an expert. For example, if an alien ship with Egyptian symbols on the outside came tumbling past Earth, NASA would send up trained astronauts (including anyone who took archaeology as a minor subject in college) and have a battery of Egyptologists in mission control to translate the footage sent back.



                                        Knowledge skills have some potential if telepresence is not possible. If a mission is required to operate under strict emissions control for an intelligence-gathering or special forces action then it might be that having a trained mimic who speaks colloquial Icelandic could be critical to infiltrating a space station to stop Dr Evil's nefarious scheme. Given the difficulty of being stealthy in space (and the unlikelihood of anyone allowing Dr Evil to build his space station in the first place), this is an extremely far-fetched scenario.



                                        A slightly more plausible option is a "dying wish" type scenario. Billionaire CEO and astronaut John Smith has been critically injured in an accident on his company's newly built private space station in Earth orbit and will die in a few weeks. John Smith's injuries are such that he cannot survive returning to Earth. Jane Smith is sent up on the next resupply flight to be with her dying husband when he passes. While this is not strictly a must send an untrained person to orbit scenario, it is possibly plausible for near future.



                                        Finally, going clean into fantasy realms, putting together Timst's answer and Thorne's comment about getting rid of the Kardashians - maybe it is the safest place to put someone. A person develops telepathic powers that they can't control and their radius of effect is increasing. They are innocent (and potentially very valuable when/if their powers are understood but it will soon be unsafe for anyone to be within a 10,000 km radius. Instead of killing them, stick them in a space station in geostationary orbit and do not route any manned missions within the danger radius.







                                        share|improve this answer












                                        share|improve this answer



                                        share|improve this answer










                                        answered 3 hours ago









                                        KerrAvon2055KerrAvon2055

                                        3,9631717




                                        3,9631717























                                            0












                                            $begingroup$

                                            Money, notoriety, political grease... You know, the stuff that makes the world go 'round



                                            If Senator Jake Garn's famous flight into space proved anything, it's that all you need to go to space is clout.



                                            Clout comes in many forms. When we're young, sticks and taunts tend to be sufficient clout. As we get older, more sophisticated forms of clout come into play like money and keeping pictures of your boss golfing with Satan locked in a safe deposit box. People such as industrialists like Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Politicians like Jake Garn, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, musicians like Justin Bieber.



                                            There are oh, so many impractical reasons for space agencies like NASA to send people into space. And don't believe for a moment that after Virgin Galactic and SpaceX send the first tourists into space that NASA won't get on board — if only for the additional funding.






                                            share|improve this answer









                                            $endgroup$


















                                              0












                                              $begingroup$

                                              Money, notoriety, political grease... You know, the stuff that makes the world go 'round



                                              If Senator Jake Garn's famous flight into space proved anything, it's that all you need to go to space is clout.



                                              Clout comes in many forms. When we're young, sticks and taunts tend to be sufficient clout. As we get older, more sophisticated forms of clout come into play like money and keeping pictures of your boss golfing with Satan locked in a safe deposit box. People such as industrialists like Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Politicians like Jake Garn, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, musicians like Justin Bieber.



                                              There are oh, so many impractical reasons for space agencies like NASA to send people into space. And don't believe for a moment that after Virgin Galactic and SpaceX send the first tourists into space that NASA won't get on board — if only for the additional funding.






                                              share|improve this answer









                                              $endgroup$
















                                                0












                                                0








                                                0





                                                $begingroup$

                                                Money, notoriety, political grease... You know, the stuff that makes the world go 'round



                                                If Senator Jake Garn's famous flight into space proved anything, it's that all you need to go to space is clout.



                                                Clout comes in many forms. When we're young, sticks and taunts tend to be sufficient clout. As we get older, more sophisticated forms of clout come into play like money and keeping pictures of your boss golfing with Satan locked in a safe deposit box. People such as industrialists like Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Politicians like Jake Garn, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, musicians like Justin Bieber.



                                                There are oh, so many impractical reasons for space agencies like NASA to send people into space. And don't believe for a moment that after Virgin Galactic and SpaceX send the first tourists into space that NASA won't get on board — if only for the additional funding.






                                                share|improve this answer









                                                $endgroup$



                                                Money, notoriety, political grease... You know, the stuff that makes the world go 'round



                                                If Senator Jake Garn's famous flight into space proved anything, it's that all you need to go to space is clout.



                                                Clout comes in many forms. When we're young, sticks and taunts tend to be sufficient clout. As we get older, more sophisticated forms of clout come into play like money and keeping pictures of your boss golfing with Satan locked in a safe deposit box. People such as industrialists like Richard Branson and Elon Musk, Politicians like Jake Garn, actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, musicians like Justin Bieber.



                                                There are oh, so many impractical reasons for space agencies like NASA to send people into space. And don't believe for a moment that after Virgin Galactic and SpaceX send the first tourists into space that NASA won't get on board — if only for the additional funding.







                                                share|improve this answer












                                                share|improve this answer



                                                share|improve this answer










                                                answered 3 hours ago









                                                JBHJBH

                                                43.3k593207




                                                43.3k593207






























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