---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We're going to stop looking at Earth from…"
description: "\"We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we don't like what we are seeing and the conclusions that leads us to? That's nonsense.\" — Davi..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg"
---

#  We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we…

![“We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we don't like what we are seeing and the conclusions that leads us to? That's nonsense.” quote by David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg)

> “We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we don't like what we are seeing and the conclusions that leads us to? That's nonsense.”

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

We must confront uncomfortable truths about Earth rather than avoid them; denial hinders progress.

**In simple terms:** Facing reality about Earth is essential.

Key Takeaway

Acknowledge and act on what we see.

Themes

environment science responsibility

Mood

concerned urgent

Type

reflective call‑to‑action

When to use this quote

- policy making
- public education
- environmental activism

Key Concepts

cognitive dissonance truth seeking

Questions to Reflect On

- What truths about Earth are we avoiding?
- How can we turn discomfort into action?

A Different Perspective

Ignoring evidence leads to poor decisions.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Nonsense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonsense/)

## Related quotes

> [I'm not going into infinity. I'm going into low earth orbit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-sharman/i-m-not-going-into-infinity-i-m-going-into-low-earth-orbit/)

[Helen Sharman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-sharman/)

> [Research into manned spaceflight is shifting from low-Earth orbit to destinations much further away, like Mars and the asteroid belt. But society will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-weir/research-into-manned-spaceflight-is-shifting-from-low-earth-orbit-to/)

[Andy Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-weir/)

> [Before the current decade ends, fee-paying passengers will be experiencing suborbital flights aboard privately funded vehicles. . . . It won't be too long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/before-the-current-decade-ends-fee-paying-passengers-will-be/)

[Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/)

> [Where we're operating is orbital adventures. We would offer five to seven days in low Earth orbit aboard our own spacecraft where customers would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-chiao/where-we-re-operating-is-orbital-adventures-we-would-offer-five-to/)

[Leroy Chiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-chiao/)

> [Market studies suggest space tourism-a rubbernecker's trip to earth orbit-is likely to draw 50,000 passengers a year if the ticket can be pushed below…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-harry-stine/market-studies-suggest-space-tourism-a-rubbernecker-s-trip-to-earth/)

G. Harry Stine

> [“The cheapest orbit available is LEO (Low Earth Orbit). People often think that "orbit" means there's no gravity. This is incorrect. In fact, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-weinersmith/the-cheapest-orbit-available-is-leo-low-earth-orbit-people-often/)

[Kelly Weinersmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-weinersmith/)

> [Our company does have a lunar interest. It's obviously secondary to our activities in low Earth orbit, which we certainly want to successfully accomplish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bigelow/our-company-does-have-a-lunar-interest-it-s-obviously-secondary-to/)

[Robert Bigelow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bigelow/)

> [It is only by freeing NASA from routine human transport to low-Earth orbit that we can afford to once again see American astronauts exploring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/it-is-only-by-freeing-nasa-from-routine-human-transport-to-low-earth/)

[Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/)

> [“When I applied to graduate school many years ago, I wrote an essay expressing my puzzlement at how a country that could put a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wheelan/when-i-applied-to-graduate-school-many-years-ago-i-wrote-an-essay/)

[Charles Wheelan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wheelan/)

> [History will remember the inhabitants of this century as the people who went from Kitty Hawk to the moon in 66 years, only to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/history-will-remember-the-inhabitants-of-this-century-as-the-people/)

[Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/)

> [I will free NASA from the restriction of serving primarily as a logistics agency for low-earth orbit activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-will-free-nasa-from-the-restriction-of-serving-primarily-as-a/)

[Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/)

> [Once you get to earth orbit, you're halfway to anywhere in the solar system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/once-you-get-to-earth-orbit-you-re-halfway-to-anywhere-in-the-solar/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [It is time to declare that the goal of the United States in space is the settlement of the solar system, from low Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-tumlinson/it-is-time-to-declare-that-the-goal-of-the-united-states-in-space-is/)

[Rick Tumlinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-tumlinson/)

> [“Space junk had made low Earth orbit space almost unusable by the mid-thirties, and it had taken a decade of concerted and costly international…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sandford/space-junk-had-made-low-earth-orbit-space-almost-unusable-by-the-mid/)

[John Sandford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sandford/)

> [Where one component might do, two are used bcause rescue on a lunar mission would be next to impossible. After all, you're 250,000 miles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-swigert/where-one-component-might-do-two-are-used-bcause-rescue-on-a-lunar/)

[Jack Swigert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-swigert/)

## More by David Grinspoon

> [I think the best SF writers are very aware of what we, in the scientific community, are doing, thinking, and discovering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-think-the-best-sf-writers-are-very-aware-of-what-we-in-the/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [If we gutted NASA Earth Science, it wouldn't be NOAA or some other agency that would take the lead. It would be the Chinese…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/if-we-gutted-nasa-earth-science-it-wouldn-t-be-noaa-or-some-other/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [When you think about alien intelligences making art, you then have to think about what art is and how bound up it is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/when-you-think-about-alien-intelligences-making-art-you-then-have-to/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [What if life is not carbon-based? Can life exist as a gas or a plasma? Could planets or stars in some sense be alive?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/what-if-life-is-not-carbon-based-can-life-exist-as-a-gas-or-a-plasma/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [What I'm interested in is the conversations going on about the Anthropocene and what it means to view ourselves as a part of Earth's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/what-i-m-interested-in-is-the-conversations-going-on-about-the/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [I do comparative studies of climate evolution, and the interactions between planetary atmosphere and surfaces and their radiation environment, and try to understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-do-comparative-studies-of-climate-evolution-and-the-interactions/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [I'd been politically active ever since my parents wheeled me in a stroller in a 'ban the bomb' march in Boston in 1963.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-d-been-politically-active-ever-since-my-parents-wheeled-me-in-a/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [Through space-based climate studies, my colleagues and I have learned that a stable and comfortable climate is not something to take for granted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/through-space-based-climate-studies-my-colleagues-and-i-have-learned/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [We have all this very clever technology and all these abilities to manipulate the world in all these ways, yet we are faced with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-have-all-this-very-clever-technology-and-all-these-abilities-to/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [The planet Mars - crimson and bright, filling our telescopes with vague intimations of almost-familiar landforms - has long formed a celestial tabula rasa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/the-planet-mars-crimson-and-bright-filling-our-telescopes-with-vague/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [Certainly for me, as an astrobiologist, science fiction has played an important role. One of the quandaries of our field is that we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/certainly-for-me-as-an-astrobiologist-science-fiction-has-played-an/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [Time and time again, our species has escaped existential threats by reinventing ourselves, finding new skills not coded in our genes to survive new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/time-and-time-again-our-species-has-escaped-existential-threats-by/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [I think that an advanced planetary civilization will modify their own planets to be more stable, to prevent asteroid impacts and dangerous climate fluctuations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/i-think-that-an-advanced-planetary-civilization-will-modify-their-own/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [Responsible global behaviour is ultimately an act of self-preservation of, by, and for the global beast that modern technological humanity has become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/responsible-global-behaviour-is-ultimately-an-act-of-self/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

> [Venus and Mars are our next of kin: they are the two most Earth-like planets that we know about. They're the only two other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/venus-and-mars-are-our-next-of-kin-they-are-the-two-most-earth-like/)

[David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

[Explore all 103 David Grinspoon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/)

## More Earth quotes

> [There is something more important than any ultimate weapon. That is the ultimate position-the position of total control over Earth that lies somewhere out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/there-is-something-more-important-than-any-ultimate-weapon-that-is/)

[Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/)

> [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/)

[Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/)

> [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/)

[Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/)

> [Give me strength to walk the soft earth, a relative to all that is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-elk/give-me-strength-to-walk-the-soft-earth-a-relative-to-all-that-is/)

[Black Elk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-elk/)

> [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/)

[Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/)

> [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Then all this earth shines like one house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/then-all-this-earth-shines-like-one-house/)

[Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/)

> [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/)

[Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/)

> [When man of slender visits you / Nothing on earth that one can do / In well he’ll hide, or watery hole / And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-goldstein/when-man-of-slender-visits-you-nothing-on-earth-that-one-can-do-in/)

[Jack Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-goldstein/)

> [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/)

[Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/)

> [This, at last, was where things were as they ought to be. Everything was in its place -- the tree, the earth underneath, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-liedloff/this-at-last-was-where-things-were-as-they-ought-to-be-everything-was/)

[Jean Liedloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-liedloff/)

> [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/)

[Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/)

> [What did you do to save the world today?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie/what-did-you-do-to-save-the-world-today/)

[Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie/)

[Browse all 15,455 Earth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we don't like what we are seeing and the conclusions that leads us to? That's nonsense.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "David Grinspoon"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-from-orbit-because-we-don-t-like/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Earth"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-from-orbit-because-we-don-t-like/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e26/david-grinspoon-5141_earth_we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-fro_2727002.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We're going to stop looking at Earth from orbit because we don't like what we are seeing and the conclusions…” — David Grinspoon",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "David Grinspoon",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "We're going to stop looking at...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-from-orbit-because-we-don-t-like/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-re-going-to-stop-looking-at-earth-from-orbit-because-we-don-t-like/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
