Every problem we have is easier to tackle if we are economically more prosperous. Bezos even states that he thinks most industry should be moved off-planet. If we can do that, wouldn't it be good for the environment?

>Bezos even states that he thinks most industry should be moved off-planet. If we can do that, wouldn't it be good for the environment?

I would think the energy and infrastructure requirements to move most industry off-planet, integrate it with terrestrial civilization at scale, and maintain continuous growth, would be far more environmentally damaging than simply keeping it all on Earth.

Not necessarily.

You don't need to move the entire industry off-planet physically to reach a state where there is little industry on-planet and lots of industry off-planet. Tools can be made in space with materials on-hand up there. With those, you can get access to more materials (asteroid mining), and build more tools, more industry, etc.

The only real barrier right now is efficient transportation. Ion drives look poised to solve that problem.

But the effort of creating that infrastructure burns energy and creates pollution that wouldn't exist otherwise.

Also true. I think we're not going to get a good handle on what is achievable and what is optimal for a few decades at least. I have no idea what space industries might look like in say 100 years if the cost of access to space is less than 1% of what it is now, so I don't think it's a decision anyone is in a position to take right now. But short term, by which I mean the rest of my lifetime of 35+ years if I'm lucky, it's looking interesting.

I could not disagree more. We should adapt to climate change as it happens.

Besides, all of the resources we pour into forcing the climate to not change (which would be unprecedented!) are all for naught when that asteroid hits.

>are all for naught when that asteroid hits.

Hiding in space from an asteroid strike is a bad plan. Earth during an impact winter is still much much more habitable than anywhere else in the solar system.

I think you are approaching the problem the wrong way. If we are in space we can prevent the strike entirely.

Good point.

Did you know that a lot of important climate change data comes from satellites? And that observations of the Sun, Mars, and Venus also supply important data related to climate change?

But we are going to need good spaceships for when the planet is no longer inhabitable.