Should research be done in space?

Ever since the observations made by Galileo Galilei, the sky has been under constant scrutiny. Today’s big telescopes – both optical telescopes and radio telescopes – and the sending into orbit of instruments capable of operating at all wavelengths of the spectrum, have brought about a spectacular leap forward in research in astrophysics during the course of the 20th century and the dawn of the 21st. The design and construction of the giant telescopes of the future, both on earth and on board satellites, as well as the opening up of new windows onto the universe (i.e. neutrino and gravitational wave astronomy) will, during the course of the 21st century, cause a crisis of knowledge that will, without any doubt, result in a more profound and rigorous view of both the cosmos and of other fields of research, given the extraordinary possibilities available for carrying out experiments which are much more difficult to effect in the earth's atmosphere.