Gore: Over the past eight years, the International Space Station program has moved from a concept to a reality. However, human exploration of space will not end with the International Space Station. In fact, this is a new beginning.

As president, I will support a forward-looking policy on human exploration by completing the International Space Station, continuing investments to lower space transportation costs and pursuing aggressive robotic missions to Mars and the Moon as precursors for possible future human missions.

I also believe that the United States should be committed to the exploration and use of outer space by all nations for peaceful purposes and for the benefit of all humanity. The contributions from our country and other nations, including the eleven participating member countries of the European Space Agency, are crucial to the process of completing the space station.

Gore: Space-related topics permeate all parts of American life. Teaching our children about science and space is crucial to enhance our understanding of health, environmental preservation, weather prediction, biological breakthroughs, and higher education.

There are a number of space issues with which teachers have already done a great job. For example, I think we should continue teaching our kids about how the universe, galaxies, stars and planets form and change. Whether life may exist elsewhere than on planet Earth is an interesting discussion.

Children should be encouraged to learn how we could apply knowledge to establish a permanent human presence in space in order to improve life on Earth.

We should make this task easier for parents and educators by encouraging the use of new technology. NASA's "Quest Common Events Homepage," which includes a long list of weekly web chats and other online events for K-12 educators and students, has been helpful. Also, NASA's "Spacelink Express," a mailing list to receive announcements of new NASA materials and opportunities for educators, should be better integrated to assist more schools.

Gore: I firmly believe that sending humans to Mars must be a goal that we achieve in the 21st century. In fact, I think we should use the International Space Station as a testing ground for possible voyages. We also know that to make future missions affordable, we have to dramatically lower the cost of space exploration. This is why I have fought hard to support a $4 billion space transportation initiative for NASA in this year's budget.

However, before we commit to a mission, we must be certain that our astronauts can make the journey safely, withstanding the effects of zero gravity and solar radiation during the prolonged flight.

From space, we have been better able to examine locations, such as parts of our oceans, deserts and polar regions, where it is nearly impossible to make close observations. As vice president, I led the administration's efforts to save the LANDSAT 7 spacecraft and was instrumental in bringing NASA, NOAA and the USGS (U.S. Geological Service) together to reduce redundancy in the operation of space-based observation systems. In 1997, the administration also established a single, converged National Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), which led to a common ground station to control both Department of Defense and NOAA weather satellites. Using this new strategy, our scientists can now create computer-based models that simulate how the Earth operates.

More importantly, by using efficient Earth-observation systems, we can better focus on innovation that will provide tangible benefits for people where they live. For example, we can greatly enhance weather forecasts, which will increase agricultural and natural resource productivity. We can also begin to understand the causes and patterns of natural disasters and how to more effectively minimize damage. Further, we will have more accurate facts to make objective decisions about the environment, so we can better balance economy and trade.

If you entrust me with the presidency, I will continue fighting for NASA and its initiatives, like the "Earth Science Enterprise," to give us the view from space that we need to improve our quality of life for future generations.

Gore: That is a difficult question, and quite frankly, I am not sure that I have the answer to it. However, over the past few years, scientists from around the world have detected evidence of more than 20 planets around other stars in our galaxy.

To further this research, I pushed for the $900 million Origins initiative to detect and characterize planetary systems beyond our own solar system.

As president, I will continue to support Origins' four space-based observatories -- the Next Generation Space Telescope, the Terrestrial Planet Finder, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility, and the Space Interferometry Mission. I will also support Earth-based observations using the Keck Telescopes on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.

While the answer to whether life exists elsewhere in the universe remains unclear, we must continue to look into space and learn more about the galaxies around us, and in turn, better understand ourselves.