6 space technologies we can use to improve life on Earth
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0:01 - 0:05I was 17 when I chose my career.
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0:06 - 0:08I was standing outside
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0:08 - 0:10on a hot summer night in Florida
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0:11 - 0:14and just a few miles from the ocean.
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0:15 - 0:18I was waiting for a miracle to happen.
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0:20 - 0:23That summer, I was privileged
to work as an intern -
0:23 - 0:25at NASA's Kennedy Space Center,
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0:26 - 0:28and the miracle I was waiting for
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0:28 - 0:32was the launch
of the Columbia Space Shuttle -
0:32 - 0:35carrying the Chandra X-Ray Observatory,
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0:35 - 0:42a telescope that would allow scientists
to peer into the edge of black holes. -
0:43 - 0:46The entire sky filled with light.
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0:47 - 0:50And it was as if it was daytime
in the middle of the night. -
0:51 - 0:55Soon, we could feel the rumble
of the engines vibrating in our chests. -
0:56 - 0:58And it wasn't a miracle;
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0:58 - 1:02it was the combined effort
of a team of thousands of people -
1:02 - 1:04who worked together
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1:04 - 1:07to make was seemed impossible a reality.
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1:08 - 1:12And I wanted to join that team.
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1:13 - 1:17So I decided to apply to a university
where I could study aerospace engineering. -
1:18 - 1:19And the following year,
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1:19 - 1:22I started at MIT
in my engineering training -
1:22 - 1:24and joined a student project
building space robots. -
1:25 - 1:27And everything was going as I planned,
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1:28 - 1:32except I was confused
about something important. -
1:34 - 1:37Now, my confusion arose
in my summer breaks. -
1:37 - 1:40I traveled to a school in Kenya,
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1:41 - 1:46and there I volunteered
with girls ages five to 17, -
1:46 - 1:50giving them lessons in English
and math and science. -
1:51 - 1:54And they taught me songs in Swahili.
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1:55 - 1:59And mostly, I just spent time
getting to know the girls, -
1:59 - 2:00enjoying their presence.
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2:01 - 2:05And I saw that these girls
and the leaders in their community, -
2:05 - 2:08they were overcoming important barriers
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2:08 - 2:12to allow these girls to have
the best possible chances in life. -
2:13 - 2:16And I wanted to join that team.
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2:17 - 2:20I wanted to be part of a team
that would help break down barriers -
2:20 - 2:23and improve the lives
of girls around the world. -
2:23 - 2:26But I was worried that studying
aerospace engineering -
2:26 - 2:27wasn't the most useful.
-
2:27 - 2:30I was worried this team in Kenya
couldn't use the technology -
2:30 - 2:32I was learning about space.
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2:33 - 2:36But thankfully, I still learned
that I was wrong. -
2:37 - 2:40I came back and interned at NASA again,
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2:40 - 2:41and this time,
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2:41 - 2:43a mentor taught me
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2:43 - 2:49that countries like Kenya had been using
space technology for decades -
2:49 - 2:52to improve the lives
in their own countries. -
2:52 - 2:55And then I knew that I could have
a career in space -
2:55 - 2:57and in development.
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2:58 - 2:59This idea is not new.
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3:00 - 3:04In fact, in 1967, the nations
of the world came together -
3:04 - 3:07to write the Outer Space Treaty.
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3:08 - 3:10This treaty made a bold statement,
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3:10 - 3:14saying, "The exploration
and use of outer space -
3:14 - 3:18should be carried on
for the benefit of all peoples, -
3:19 - 3:23irrespective of their level
of economic or scientific development." -
3:25 - 3:27We have not truly lived up to this ideal,
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3:27 - 3:31although people have worked
for decades to make this a reality. -
3:32 - 3:35Forces such as colonialism and racism
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3:36 - 3:38and gender inequality
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3:38 - 3:42have actually excluded many people
from the benefits of space -
3:43 - 3:46and caused us to believe
that space is for the few -
3:46 - 3:49or the rich or elite.
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3:50 - 3:52But we cannot afford this attitude,
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3:52 - 3:55because the world is engaged
in a vital mission -
3:55 - 3:57to improve life for everyone.
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3:58 - 4:04Our road map for this mission comes
from the 17 Sustainable Development Goals -
4:04 - 4:05of the United Nations.
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4:06 - 4:09All the member states
of the United Nations have agreed -
4:09 - 4:12that these are priorities
between now and 2030. -
4:13 - 4:18These goals give us our key moments
and opportunities of our time -- -
4:18 - 4:21opportunities to end extreme poverty,
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4:21 - 4:26to insure that everyone has access
to food and clean water. -
4:28 - 4:31We must pursue these goals
as a global community. -
4:32 - 4:36And technology from space
supports sustainable development. -
4:37 - 4:40In fact, there are six space services
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4:40 - 4:44that can help us pursue
the Sustainable Development Goals. -
4:45 - 4:48Over the next few minutes,
let's explore these six services, -
4:48 - 4:52and see examples of just a few
of the goals they help support. -
4:52 - 4:53You ready?
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4:53 - 4:54OK.
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4:54 - 4:58Communication satellites provide access
to phone and internet service -
4:59 - 5:00to almost any location on Earth.
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5:01 - 5:04This is particularly important
during times of disaster recovery. -
5:05 - 5:08When Typhoon Haiyan
struck the Philippines, -
5:08 - 5:11the local communication networks
needed to be repaired, -
5:11 - 5:14and teams brought in inflatable
communication antennas -
5:14 - 5:16that could link to satellites.
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5:16 - 5:19This was useful during the time
of repair and recovery. -
5:19 - 5:23Positioning satellites
tell us where we are -
5:23 - 5:25by telling us where they are.
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5:26 - 5:30Scientists can use this technology
to track endangered wildlife. -
5:31 - 5:33This turtle has been fitted with a system
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5:33 - 5:38that allows it to receive location
information from positioning satellites, -
5:38 - 5:40and they send the location
information to scientists -
5:40 - 5:42via communication satellites.
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5:43 - 5:46Scientists can use this knowledge
to then make better policies -
5:46 - 5:49and help determine
how to keep these animals alive. -
5:50 - 5:53Earth observation satellites.
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5:53 - 5:56They tell us what's going on
in our environment. -
5:56 - 5:59Right now, there are about 150 satellites
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5:59 - 6:02operated by over 60 government agencies,
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6:02 - 6:04and these are just
those observing the Earth. -
6:04 - 6:07And meanwhile, companies
are adding to this list. -
6:07 - 6:11Most of the governments provide the data
from the satellites for free online. -
6:11 - 6:14Some of these satellites
provide images like this, -
6:14 - 6:17that show what you would see
from a camera. -
6:17 - 6:20This is an image showing
agricultural land in Kansas. -
6:21 - 6:24However, the majority
of the Earth observation satellites -
6:24 - 6:26don't take pictures at all.
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6:26 - 6:27They take measurements.
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6:27 - 6:31And they combine these measurements
with complex computer models -
6:31 - 6:34and make beautiful,
global visualizations such as this one, -
6:34 - 6:36showing the ocean currents
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6:36 - 6:38and the temperature
of the ocean, globally. -
6:39 - 6:45Or we can look at the salt and smoke
and dust in the atmosphere, -
6:48 - 6:50or the rainfall and snowfall, globally,
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6:53 - 6:58as well as the annual cycle of vegetation
on land and in the ocean. -
7:00 - 7:04Now, scientists can take this information
about the rainfall and the vegetation -
7:04 - 7:06and use it to understand
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7:06 - 7:10what areas on Earth are in danger
of a famine or a drought -
7:10 - 7:12and provide that information
to aid organizations -
7:12 - 7:16so they can be prepared with food aid
before the hunger becomes severe. -
7:17 - 7:22In space, we have an orbiting laboratory
on the International Space Station. -
7:23 - 7:26The vehicle and everything inside
are in a form of free fall -
7:26 - 7:27around the Earth,
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7:27 - 7:29and they don't experience
the effect of gravity. -
7:30 - 7:32And because of this,
we call it "microgravity." -
7:33 - 7:36When astronauts are
in the microgravity environment, -
7:36 - 7:39their bodies react
as if they're aging rapidly. -
7:40 - 7:42Their bones and muscles weaken,
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7:42 - 7:46and their cardiovascular system
and their immune system change. -
7:47 - 7:50As scientists study how to keep
astronauts healthy in space, -
7:50 - 7:54we can take the exercises and techniques
we use for astronauts -
7:54 - 7:56and transfer them to people on Earth
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7:56 - 7:57to improve our health here.
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7:57 - 8:01Often, as we develop technology
for astronauts and exploration -
8:01 - 8:02or for spacecraft,
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8:02 - 8:06we can also transfer those inventions
to improve life on Earth. -
8:06 - 8:07Here's one of my favorites.
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8:07 - 8:09It's a water filtration system,
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8:09 - 8:12and a key component of it
is based on the technology -
8:12 - 8:14to filter wastewater on the space station.
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8:14 - 8:16It's now being used around the world.
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8:17 - 8:20Space is also an infinite source
of inspiration, -
8:20 - 8:21through education,
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8:21 - 8:23through research and astronomy
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8:23 - 8:26and that age-old experience of stargazing.
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8:27 - 8:30Now, countries around the world
are engaging in advancing -
8:30 - 8:31their own development
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8:31 - 8:35by increasing their local knowledge
of engineering and science and space. -
8:36 - 8:40Let's meet some of the world's
newest satellite engineers. -
8:40 - 8:43This is Elyka Abello, from Venezuela.
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8:44 - 8:47Elyka is training as a satellite engineer
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8:47 - 8:50as part of her national
satellite program in Venezuela. -
8:51 - 8:53She has designed a software tool
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8:53 - 8:56that allows her team to better design
the power systems for engineering. -
8:58 - 9:01This is Adel Castillo-Duran,
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9:01 - 9:02from the Philippines.
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9:02 - 9:05Adel is both a meteorologist
and a satellite engineer, -
9:06 - 9:09and she uses data from satellites
in her weather forecasting. -
9:11 - 9:12And finally, meet Hala.
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9:13 - 9:14Hala is from the Sudan,
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9:14 - 9:18and as she was studying electrical
engineering as an undergraduate -
9:18 - 9:19in Khartoum,
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9:19 - 9:22she and several students decided
to build their own satellite. -
9:22 - 9:26And later, Hala earned a scholarship
to study satellite engineering -
9:26 - 9:28at the graduate level.
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9:29 - 9:31These stories that I've shared with you
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9:31 - 9:36all illustrate that space truly is useful
for sustainable development -
9:36 - 9:37for the benefit of all peoples.
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9:38 - 9:40But we have more work to do,
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9:40 - 9:44because there are still barriers
that exclude people from space -
9:44 - 9:46and limit the impact of this technology.
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9:47 - 9:51For many people,
Earth observation data is complex. -
9:52 - 9:54And satellite communication
services are too expensive. -
9:55 - 9:58And microgravity research
just appears to be inaccessible. -
10:00 - 10:04This is what motivates my work
as a professor at MIT's Media Lab. -
10:05 - 10:10I've recently founded a new research group
called Space Enabled. -
10:11 - 10:15We are working to tear down these barriers
that limit the benefits of space. -
10:16 - 10:18And we're also going to develop
the future applications -
10:18 - 10:22that will continue to contribute
to sustainable development. -
10:23 - 10:24We'll keep on this work
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10:24 - 10:28until we can truly say that space
is for the benefit of all peoples, -
10:29 - 10:32and we are all space enabled.
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10:33 - 10:34Thank you.
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10:34 - 10:37(Applause)
- Title:
- 6 space technologies we can use to improve life on Earth
- Speaker:
- Danielle Wood
- Description:
-
Danielle Wood leads the Space Enabled research group at the MIT Media Lab, where she works to tear down the barriers that limit the benefits of space exploration to only the few, the rich or the elite. She identifies six technologies developed for space exploration that can contribute to sustainable development across the world -- from observation satellites that provide information to aid organizations to medical research on microgravity that can be used to improve health care on Earth. "Space truly is useful for sustainable development for the benefit of all peoples," Wood says.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 10:51
Brian Greene edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Brian Greene edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Brian Greene approved English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Brian Greene edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Camille Martínez accepted English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Camille Martínez edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Camille Martínez edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth | ||
Leslie Gauthier edited English subtitles for How we can use space technology to improve life on Earth |