Medieval merchants risked the hazards of the silk Road to reach the markets of China; Portuguese caravels in the 15th century sailed beyond the bounds of the known world, searching less for knowledge than for gold and Spices. Historically, the driver for opening frontiers has always been the search for resources. Science and curiosity are weaker drivers. The only way to open up space, whether the space of solar system or 'interstellar space is to create an. economic engine, and that engine is resource extraction.

Correct Option (C)

The passage asserts that the historical impetus for opening new frontiers, exemplified by the Silk Road and Portuguese voyages, has consistently been the search for resources and economic gain. It explicitly states that science and curiosity are weaker drivers, concluding that future space exploration will also necessitate an economic engine driven by resource extraction. Therefore, the statement that human beings are motivated to explore new frontiers principally by economic considerations accurately summarizes the core argument presented.

Incorrect Options:

• Option (A) is an overgeneralization. The passage focuses specifically on the motivation for "opening frontiers" and "exploration," driven by resource extraction and economic engines. It does not claim that wealth generation is the primary motive for "any human endeavour."
• Option (B) misinterprets the passage's claim. The passage argues that resource extraction will create an economic engine to drive space exploration, not that space itself will govern the future economy. The emphasis is on the economic driver for space exploration, not its ultimate economic governance.
• Option (D) identifies a characteristic of exploration but not its primary driver as articulated in the passage. While risk-taking is undoubtedly involved in venturing into new frontiers, the passage's central argument highlights economic considerations and resource extraction as the fundamental motivation, rather than risk-taking behaviour itself.