Space Exploration Topics for Spacetastic Essays and Research Papers

Space attracts people with its infinite beauty and mystery. Today, we already know a lot about the universe, but we still only know a tiny percentage of what actually happens in the universe. The discovery and exploration of space is so fascinating that it inspires people to learn more and more things. People don’t give up in exploring the cosmos, discussing it, creating diverse theories, and building the most diverse assumptions. It seems that the topics about space are infinite. And does the universe have an end?

In this article, we want to share with you some space exploration research topics that you can use in your essay, research paper, speech, or any related activity. Also, check out the list of movies and TV documentary series at the end of this article to watch and discuss in your class.

Controversial topics space exploration

1. Prove that space exploration isn’t a waste of money and energy.
2. Can we avoid the militarization of space? Do we need to start creating orbital weapons?
3. Is it acceptable to start asteroid mining?
4. Pros and cons of a space lift by government agencies and a space lift from private companies.
5. Do you think the US government should increase spending on space exploration?
6. Why do you think humankind should continue to explore space?
7. Does space exploration refer to the public sector or private sector? Why?
8. Persuade your readers about whether space exploration is a waste of money, time, and human lives.
9. Define the issues connected to space exploration and women.
10. Approve or disprove this statement: “Space exploration is still important today.”
11. Explain why space exploration is the right investment for certain countries in the 21st century.
12. How does space exploration benefit our daily life?
13. Is it ethically right to colonize other planets?
14. Do we need to protect the environment on other planets?
15. Should we prevent terraforming on planets like Mars?
16. What ethical principles should we adhere to in space?
17. Should we harvest the mineral wealth of asteroids?
18. Should landers and space probes be sterilized to avoid possible dangers from returning samples from Mars, Europa, etc.?
19. Are one-way space human missions real?
20. Can space exploration assist developing countries?
21. What is the meaning of ISS? Should we limit space funding?
22. What is better: reusable or expendable launch vehicles?

Science space exploration topics

1. Describe the applications of space exploration.
2. Analyze the use of solar energy for space exploration programs.
3. Define similarities and differences in space and aquatic explorations.
4. What do you think is the future of space exploration? What do scientists think about it?
5. Define the pros and cons of the use of robots for space exploration.
6. How can technologies like VR and AR help space exploration?
7. What are ways to optimize space travel efficiency?
8. How does space exploration affect the environment of Earth?
9. Analyze the impact of space exploration on the economy, society, science, and politics of the US (or another country).
10. Describe the scientific and cultural benefits of past, current, and future space explorations.
11. What are the most significant technical problems in space exploration?
12. Analyze the usage of nuclear propulsion in spacecraft. Define the safety and analogs.
13. Describe the problem of utilization of space satellites and cosmic garbage.

Space exploration research topics: problems and issues

1. What are the dangers and negative consequences of space exploration?
2. Think about the difficulties astronauts may encounter during a Mars space expedition.
3. Define the risks of space exploration and what difficulties countries encounter.
4. Define the positive and negative impacts of space exploration.
5. What are the main ethical issues connected with the exploration of outer space?
6. Describe the main hazards for astronauts connected to reaching outer space.
7. Describe the issues connected to commercial space travels.
8. What are the main challenges of long-duration space travels? What stops humankind from continuing active space exploration?
9. Define the health risks connected with space travels. How do space travels influence the human body?
10. What are the issues in the law system in regards to space exploration?

Interesting space exploration topics

1. Describe the history of space exploration from WW2 until today.
2. Describe the effect of space exploration on the outcome of the Cold War.
3. How has space exploration changed world history? What if people didn’t manage to go to outer space?
4. Explain how space exploration has affected the development of medicine.
5. Explore the political, security, and moral challenges of space exploration and colonization.
6. Describe the mission of the Dawn spacecraft in solar system exploration.
7. What experiments were held on the International Space Station (ISS)? How have those experiments contributed to space exploration?
8. Explore the mission of the Hubble Space Telescope. What are the main discoveries? How does it help us understand the universe?
9. Analyze the perspectives of privatization of the newly explored space objects.
10. How does space exploration affect you personally?

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Movies and TV series about space

Here are some movies that you can discuss in your essay. We have listed only the films that are based on a true story and can tell you more about the life and history of space programs and the life of astronauts.

• “Houston, We’ve Got a Problem” (1974)
• “The Right Stuff” (1983)
• “Challenger” (1990)
• “Apollo 13” (1995)
• “October Sky” (1999)
• “Dreaming of Space” (2005)
• “In the Shadow of the Moon” (2007)
• “Moonshot” (2009)
• “Gagarin: First in Space” (2013)
• “Hidden Figures” (2016)
• “Salyut 7” (2017)
• “The Age of Pioneers” (2017)
• “First Man” (2018)

Here are some documentary films and television series that you may find interesting to explore space.

• “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage” (1980)
• “Space Race” (2005)
• “The Universe” (2007-2012
• “When We Left Earth: The NASA Missions” (2008)
• “Cosmic Collisions” (2008)
• “End of the Universe” (2008)
• “Death of the Mars Rover” (2011)
• “Apollo 17: The Untold Story of the Last Men on the Moon” (2011)
• “The Mars Underground” (2011)
• “Solar Storms: The Threat to Planet Earth” (2012)
• “How to Build a Planet” (2013)
• “Cosmonauts: How Russia Won the Space Race” (2014)
• “Men on Mars” (2014)
• “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey” (2014)
• “Mission: Pluto” (2015)
• “Tim Peake: How to be an Astronaut” (2015
• “Horizon: Which Universe are We In?” (2015)
• “Looking at the Starry Sky” (2015)
• “Cosmic Dawn: The Real Moment of Creation” (2015)
• “Mars” (2016)
• “Telescope” (2016)
• “A Year in Space (2016)
• “Space Robot Revolution” (2016)
• “Genius by Stephen Hawking” (2016)
• “The Beginning and End of the Universe” (2016)
• “Space’s Deepest Secrets” (2016)
• “MARS Inside SpaceX” (2018)
• “One Strange Rock” (2018)
• “How the Universe Works” (2010-present)

The list of space exploration topics is as endless as the universe. We hope that our list will help you get a bit closer to choosing the most interesting topic for your paper. And if your homework is like a black hole in your life, our skilled EssayShark writers can help you! Just order the paper on our website and get your spacetastic paper on time.