Sir, - John O'Shea of GOAL condemns the spending of £148 million on the NEAR project to study the asteroid Eros in the face of worldwide poverty and starvation.
At a time when the Bush administration, for instance, is giving every sign of intending to spend limitless billions on the blithely named National Missile Defence programme, which is doomed to technical and diplomatic disaster, it seems arbitrary and perverse to single out a worthy scientific endeavour for criticism. Also, it is misleading to suggest that we must choose between science and our moral duty to poorer nations when we can easily afford both. If most Western nations are falling short of the UN international aid target of 0.7 per cent of GNP, it is because of the weakness of political pressure on their governments and not because pointless jaunts around the solar system are swallowing up all the cash.
Incidentally, Mr O'Shea's assertion that mankind will derive "not a lot" of benefit from the endeavour is startling in its ignorance. Asteroids hit planets all the time, and one as large as Eros could extinguish all life on earth. It is hardly necessary to elaborate on why it is important to better our understanding of such bodies. - Yours, etc.,
Paraic O'Donnell, Bray, Co Wicklow.