Yes you can. And you don’t need to be a scientist, engineer, or any kind of expert on space technologies. So how can you help? It’s by simply doing this: Tell someone about the ideas on this website. This matters because the only hope for building the 1st generation USS Enterprise will ultimately depend on an enthusiastic core of people who are encouraging the undertaking. Enthusiasm for an idea can become contagious. And if support is not there among an enthusiastic base of people, Congress and a US President will never get on board with the idea.
There have been many cases in US history where a group of citizens dedicated to an idea prevailed in getting the government to do something that made sense to them. In fact, it is the zeal of a dedicated minority of citizens that often leads the way to new policies. This minority in time pulls the politicians and a majority of citizens along with them.
If the idea of building the 1st generation USS Enterprise ever becomes an active topic for discussion on the national legislative agenda – it will be because a sizeable support base of non-experts emerges who are spreading enthusiasm about the idea of building the ship.
The thought of NASA getting funded and starting on the development of the 1st generation of USS Enterprise may seem far-fetched. But seemingly impossible things often happen in human history – and they can happen very quickly. After the Wright Brothers first engine-powered flight, fifteen years later the first transatlantic flight occurred. After the first human was launched into space, a mere nine years later men were walking on the moon. A year later the first probe landed on another planet. The Berlin Wall suddenly came crashing down – and the Cold War abruptly ended – at a time when communist oppression on a vast scale seemed like it would be with the world far into the future. Citizens time and again, against long odds, have overthrown tyrannical governments. Entire nations have been destroyed by wars, and a couple of decades later these countries have bounced back and become prosperous because of the irrepressible human capital within those nations. History is full of amazing and wholly unexpected accomplishments by members of the human race. And this is nearly always due to people working diligently with a clear goal in mind.
So if you want to help with getting the Enterprise built – tell someone about the ideas on this website. You just never know what extraordinary things lay in the future just ahead of us.
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Now, if you are an expert in some aspect of spacecraft development, or space mission planning, your inputs are welcome at BuildTheEnterprise. If you have thoughts on technical things you might contribute, feel free to email me. I’m speaking here of scientists and engineers with front-line knowledge of spacecraft development and space exploration who might want to apply their knowledge to further develop the ideas on this website.
Eventually I hope to gain expert contributions to help advance the conceptual design and analysis for every system in the USS Enterprise as well as to refine mission scenarios. After all – what could be more fun for experts in these fields? Dreams of the possible inspire us all.
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