The Practical Values of Space Exploration / Report of the Committee on Science and Astronautics, U.S. / House of Representatives, Eighty-Sixth Congress, Second / Session

Union Calendar No. 928 86th Congress, 2d Session House Report No. 2091
July 5, 1960.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 58231° WASHINGTON: 1960
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL House of Representatives, Committee on Science and Astronautics, Washington, D.C., July 1, 1960. Hon. Overton Brooks, Chairman, Committee on Science and Astronautics. Dear Mr. Chairman: I am forwarding herewith for your consideration a staff study, The Practical Values of Space Exploration. This study was undertaken pursuant to your request for information covering the various utilities of the national space effort. The study has been prepared by Philip B. Yeager and reviewed by other members of the professional staff. Charles F. Ducander, Executive Director and Chief Counsel. LETTER OF SUBMITTAL House of Representatives, Committee on Science and Astronautics, Washington, D.C., July 5, 1960. Hon. Sam Rayburn, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Washington, D.C. Dear Mr. Speaker: By direction of the Committee on Science and Astronautics, I submit the following report on The Practical Values of Space Exploration for the consideration of the 86th Congress. Overton Brooks, Chairman .
This report has been undertaken for a special reason. It is to explain to the taxpayer just why so many of his dollars are going into the American effort to explore space, and to indicate what he can expect in return which is of value to him.
Such an explanation, even after 2 years of relatively high-geared activity in the space exploration field, appears to be warranted. There is still a segment of the U.S. population which has little, if any, notion of the values that the space program has for the average citizen. To these people the expenditure of billions of dollars on missiles, rockets, satellites, Moon probes, and other space activities remains something of a mystery—particularly when so many other worthy projects throughout the land may be slowed or stalled for lack of funds.