Category: Resources

Via my mum, and the British Council: Man or machine? How should future exploration of the Solar system proceed, with astronauts or robots? (lecture at HEMDA – Centre for science education).

Man or machine? How should future exploration of the Solar system proceed, with astronauts or robots?

The UK science community is currently debating whether it should sign up to the ESA Aurora programme of manned space flight. In the past, the UK has worked entirely with robots, such as the ill-fated Beagle 2 lander on Mars, but is there a strong case for promoting human exploration? Would a new generation of human explorers help to inspire children to study science, maths and technology in schools, as happened with the Apollo programme in the US? Can a robot ever replace a human? Do the safety limitations of human exploration restrict the advance of scientific discovery? Or should we look at a compromise, where man and machine work together?

Dr Paul Roche, Director of a robotic telescope project (the Faulkes Telescopes) based at the School of Physics and Astronomy, Cardiff University, will discuss the issue of robots versus human exploration.

Thursday, November 24th, 19:00-21:00; The event is free but places are limited. Please book early. (Where is it and how to get there)