Sir, – We now have pictures of a big rock that is four billion miles from Earth. Although I am a science enthusiast, I wonder if we should first at least also look inwards. We should first see what we have, especially as we are making a pretty good effort to destroy it. The purpose of science is varied, including learning more about how big rocks a long way away rotate, but its first purpose should be to make the human condition better.
We still have so many things to achieve here starting with the challenging, such as feeding the masses, through to the difficult, curing many diseases; and then the seemingly impossible, stopping climate change.
Ultima Thule has been around for at least four billion years so we could wait a few more centuries and get a great Instagram shot later.
Let us sort out our own world and then go and check out the neighbours later. – Yours, etc,
:fill(white):background_color(white)/static.themebuilder.aws.arc.pub/irishtimes/1647534191476.png)
DENNIS FITZGERALD,
Melbourne, Australia.