Stephen Hawking made a career out of investigating and explaining the cosmos to the layman. Now the renowned physicist is telling us that we need to get off the planet and (relatively) fast.

The AP reports that Hawking was recently touring the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where research on steam cells is being conducted. At the event, the physicist said that humans won’t survie another 1,000 years on Earth unless we escape “beyond our fragile planet.”

Noted scientists have taken the same stance, though not as extreme, over the years arguing that humanity as a species should explore the cosmos not only to preserve the species, but for economic purposes as well.

Here’s Bill Nye arguing that we should be exploring space for economic benefit:

Here’s Michio Kaku talking about the chances of mankind destroying itself in the next 1,000 years: