So much “new space” companies bragged their projects. Where are they now? Even those of them who offered real ideas and was not an imagination of their mentally ill founders – most of that companies disappeared.

Hundreds of enthusiasts, worked in sheds and basements on their first launch vechicles, perspective thrusters, innovative cubesats, advanced communication devices… They boasted their knowledge, their innovative ideas, their agility and enthusiasm… They faced same fate – disintegration, disappointment, oblivion.

Humongous corporations, so proud of their previous success in space, protected from failures by their financial stability, military contracts, technological supremacy – where are their success now? What new did they do in last 20 years?

Those of you who came to space now – did you ever thought, what is real value of your knowledge, your pride, your stubborness, your enthusiasm?

For space all your knowledge, power, money, technology – means actually nothing. Or, better to say, The Great Void just doesn’t care.

Space will always be a final challenge. Difficulty level you will face in real space projects will always be higher than you can endure. That is eternal truth, not related with your technological level – for those of you who will finally get Alcubierre-based FTL drive, difficulties will be same hard as for Goddard, Von Braun and Korolev. Real space is just too huge, and this will make all your efforts negligible forever.

You must never forget about this. Your bragging, your showing off, your sparkly project presentations will always mean nothing.

Space requires humility. Stubbornness. Steadiness. Fraction of fanaticism. Only real deeds here proves your passion. Only real knowledge here proves your wishes. You need clearly understand that you – with all your theory of orbital mechanics and practice of flights, with all your tons of thrust, all your petaflops of computing power – are nothing (and will always be!) under the face of Space.

Of course, Universe has no goal to humiliate you this way. As I said earlier, it just doesn’t care. But you are sapient. You – astrogators, communication officers, engine masters, newborn pirates and conquistadors of Space, those who talks with Universe with pure and natural language of formulas and spent delta-v – you need to know and remember your scale in Universe! And when you design your projects, you must always understand this – and same time understand that you understand this. And never step back.

This is humility. This is what space requires.