"Messages from Earth Ride on Planet Hunting Space Craft"
The Kepler spacecraft consists of two main parts: one, instruments to detect other worlds, and two, a DVD attached to the spacecraft consisting of messages submitted by tens of thousands of people on why they thought the Kepler mission is important.
Many messages focused on Kepler's scientific objectives, which coincide with the exploration of humanity's deepest questions. Questions such as "are there other worlds out there like our own? and if so, are there other entities who may be seeking knowledge of us? Others say the Kepler mission is a result of humanity's natural and instinctive curiosity, and a manifestation of a need to reach out into space. Others believe that by searching outside our own world, we are given a larger sense of our place and size in the universe and therefore more appreciate the uniqueness and beauty of Earth. Another group of people such as Christina Aas of Norway emphasized that by searching for other life forms we might learn more about ourselves in the process and hopefully that despite whatever conflicts exist between people, on the whole we are all the same.
All in all, whether or not the Kepler mission reveals many terrestrial-style planets (which it is hypothesized is more likely than not) it is an important mission in space exploration for humanity.
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