Is SpaceX Hiring Space Dentists?
OH MY GOD! Did YOU see that BIG ROCKET!
Some Background
SpaceX just kicked total a** and successfully launched their Falcon Heavy rocket from the infamous Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Falcon Heavy is a seriously powerful rocket. As a matter of fact, it is the most powerful operational rocket in the world by a factor of two!
Here it is sitting on the pad ready for launch.
This rocket is a milestone for the company SpaceX and a tremendous leap forward in space exploration. A rocket like the Falcon Heavy is a big step forward in flying crew missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond! Woohoo!
Moreover, what makes this launch so incredible is that two of the three rocket engines that helped propel the payload (Elon Musk’s Telsa Roadster) were successfully recovered by the SpaceX team which means that they can be refurbished for future launches. This type of rocket reusability is exactly what makes SpaceX's success such a landmark achievement in rocket technology.
And, you can assume that as we take to space exploration, we will need trained dentists to handle dental emergencies, pain and tackle new challenges during space travel and planet colonization.
The Launch
When the launch was reset on Feb 6th, 2018 to 3:45 pm, I was in the middle of placing a composite restoration.
I had talked to my assistant about the Falcon Heavy launch earlier in the day so she had the YouTube live stream open on our patient TV.
When the countdown got to T-10 s, all three of us stopped what we were doing to watch the final sequence of events before the launch.
I held my breath, as 27 Merlin engines of the three Falcon 9 rockets ignited. As the rocket lifted slowly off the pad and climbed higher and higher, I felt chills run down my spine. We all gaped at the TV screen and I felt this incredible adrenaline-rush course through my body. It truly felt like I was linked to a billion other people and our favorite team had just won the Stanley Cup. I felt proud of what we had accomplished and where the next step would take us in space exploration.
The three of us cheered after every successful maneuver that Falcon Heavy executed perfectly. And we watched in amazement as two side boosters landed side by side at the Florida launch pad. Can it get more UNREAL? We were so excited after the stream ended that we all high-fived each other.
Okay time to get back into dentist mode!
As I polished and checked the bite on the new restoration I pondered the days when we would be flying manned missions to Mars and other planets regularly. It got me thinking about the needs one would have on these journeys. I expect beyond engineering that people would need medical and dental expertise. And that’s when it hit me.
It is only reasonable to assume that as we take to space exploration, we will need trained dentists in aeronautics and space dentistry!
Space Dentistry, A New Specialty?
Realistically, our space-faring civilization is bound to still get pulpits, decay and even broken teeth during space travel and during colonization of new planets. There are several key areas where dentists will need to adapt their technique and their skills to match new physical variables such as lower forces of gravity, expulsion of fluids and much more.
Tools like suction and high speed will need to be modified and upgraded. Materials that work better in these environments will need to developed and tested. Moreover, the type of dental emergencies that arise during space travel and on new planets may differ from what we are used to seeing on Earth.
Certainly, there will be an extensive need to build a comprehensive knowledge base with a pioneering mindset in this new world of dentistry. I think the fire of space exploration is bound to ignite new specialties in many field and I am very excited to see what SpaceX has in store with future launches. I am even more thrilled about the future of dentistry on Earth, in Deep Space and beyond…
Can't wait to see a dental chair to be a payload for one of the Falcon Heavy rockets. In the meantime enjoy these surreal shots of Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster overlooking our beautiful blue planet.
So, Elon Musk…are you looking for Space Dentists?
