Page 16 - Intro to Space Sciences Spacecraft Applications

Introduction and History
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environments, materials processing impossible in the gravity-constrained
laboratories on earth is possible and may result in new alloys, crystals, and
medicines which could improve man’s existence. The need for electrical
power for space systems has lead to alternative sources of energy for use
on earth. The future uses of space are still developing, and space may truly
become mankind’s next frontier.

HISTORY OF SPACEFLIGHT

Even though many consider the launch of Sputnik I by the Soviet Union
as heralding the Space Age, man’s efforts toward this endeavor actually
began much earlier. Notwithstanding the dreams of writers such as H. G.
Wells and Jules Verne, the first practical efforts toward spaceflight really
began with early rocket pioneers such as Russia’s Konstantin Tsiolkovsky,
Germany’s Hermann Oberth, and America’s Robert Goddard. The V-2
rocket, used to terrorize England during World War 11, was the first opera-
tional rocket system. America’s advances began after the war with the aid
of expatriated German scientists, including Wernher von Braun, and a cache
of captured V-2s with which to experiment. The Soviet Union received the
same type of reparations after the war and began a similar effort.
The first efforts by both countries were in developing improvements to
the V-2, and well before Sputnik I, both countries had operational inter-
continental ballistic missile (ICBM) systems. Many of the V-2 rockets and
follow-on booster designs carried scientific experimental packages on
board during test flights. These packages measured the characteristics of
the atmosphere, the ionosphere, and the low-altitude space environment.
One such package was used by Dr. James Van Allen to discover the exis-
tence of regions of highly energetic particles encircling the globe, subse-
quently named the Van Allen radiation belts.
The Soviet Union placed the first man-made object into orbit around the
earth on October 4, 1957. The overhead signals received from the 83-kg
(184-lb) Sputnik I (“Traveler”) alarmed many who demanded that the
United States match the feat. Pressure increased when a month later Sput-
nik 2, at a surprising 507 kgs (1,120 lbs), went into orbit carrying a small
dog to test the effects of space on a living creature. (The dog Laika sur-
vived for a week until purposely poisoned, because the craft was not
capable of reentry.) America finally succeeded with Explorer I, launched
on January 31, 1958, but U.S. capabilities were severely questioned when
comparing the 8-kg (18-lb) satellite to the two prior Sputniks.