Hawking: Outer space offers human survival

LONDON, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking says the human race must expand into outer space in the coming century or face possible extinction.

The renowned scientist said he fears mankind is in great danger and its future "must be in space" if it is to survive, The Daily Telegraph reported Sunday.

War, resource depletion and overpopulation threaten the existence of the human race as never before, he said, advocating colonizing space to continue human existence.

"Our only chance of long-term survival is not to remain inward looking on planet Earth but to spread out into space," Hawking said.

"We have made remarkable progress in the last hundred years. But if we want to continue beyond the next hundred years, our future is in space," he said.

"I see great dangers for the human race," Hawking said. "There have been a number of times in the past when its survival has been a question of touch and go. The Cuban missile crisis in 1963 was one of these. The frequency of such occasions is likely to increase in the future.

"But I'm an optimist," he said. "If we can avoid disaster for the next two centuries, our species should be safe, as we spread into space."