Introduction
Obviously, Kansas wasn't referring to space in a realistic sense: it does serve to illustrate a tenet of human
nature that is one of our most basic attributes and in part defines us as a species.
Throughout the history of Homo Sapiens we have faced many challenges; from
the best way to take down a mastodon with fire-hardened spears to attempting to comprehend the mysteries of
the human genetic code. We view our lives as a series of accomplished tasks and met objectives:
we define who we are by our successes. Humans love to meet new challenges, overcome new
obstacles, and bend the very forces of nature and science to our collective wills.
These challenges can be met on a societal, organizational, or personal basis. Who hasn't felt the exhilaration
of the moment when completing a difficult task or accomplishing some new 'personal best'? What drives
someone to seek the thrill of skydiving, bungee jumping, or white water rafting? We also feel pride based on the
accomplishments of our country and any organizations that we feel a part of. Whatever you call it, instinct or manifest destiny,
it's what led our distant ancestors from the savannas of Africa to explore new lands, settle new territories,
and start the process of our social revolution.
Without this aspect of our humanity we would not have had pioneers like Columbus, Magellan, Lewis & Clark,
Perry, Byrd, Lindbergh, and a whole host of men and women who dared to achieve.
In short: I believe that mankind NEEDS new frontiers and challenges;
its our nature to go and 'stick our noses in it' as my grandmother used to say.
One thing leads to another:
As the 1950s came to a close the world was full of dire challenges. Two major countries were
locked in a cold war and were rapidly improving their arsenals of mass destruction. On October 4th,
The Soviet Union launched the first manmade satellite into orbit, SPUTNIK.
As satellites went it wasn't that impressive.. just a small sphere with several antennae and radio transmitter that went
'beep, beep, beep'. Its impact on the world's imagination, however,
was monumental. The United States, fearing that it would fall behind their adversaries, quickly swung their plans for
space exploration into high gear, and the 'space race' was on!
Within a short time the US was able to duplicate the Soviet achievement, but the ante was raised considerably when in
on April 12th, 1961, Yuri Gagarin was the first man to have left the protective veil of our atmosphere and ventured into the
reaches of space in the VOSTOK 1 spacecraft. Soon thereafter, Americans duplicated this feat by sending astronaut Alan Shepard
in the Mercury spacecraft "Liberty Bell 7" into suborbital flight on May 5th, 1961. National pride led both countries to
exceed the achievements of the other and spurred on
the drive for better technology. Both countries devised better spacecraft to extend flight time, carry an increasing number
astronauts, and expand their capabilities in the form of experimentation and research.
Another milestone was reached when female pilot Valentina Tereshkova achieved orbit on June 16th, 1962 in her
VOSTOK 6 spacecraft...she was both the youngest person (age 26) as well as the fist female to venture into space.
Within a short time a vast number of records were set and just as quickly broken as they reached for what they considered to
be the ultimate goal: to be the first country to reach the moon . This race would not be without its share of tragedy and mishaps along
the way, however: Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Edward White II, and Roger Chaffee
were killed in a full scale test of America's Apollo capsule.
On July 20, 1969, Americans Neil Armstrong and Buss Aldrin landed their LEM spacecraft on the lunar surface while a third astronaut,
Michael Collins, circled overhead. It was the culmination of over a decade of constant improvements in technology and design,
of discovering whole new areas of science and research, and by testing these new and unproven technologies at great personal risk.
Over the next several years Americans sent several new manned missions to various areas of the lunar surface, until the last
mission, Apollo 17, left its barren surface for the long trip home.
With the goal of lunar exploration achieved, both countries shifted their focus onto orbital space. On May 14th, 1973,
the US deployed their Skylab using the Saturn V rocket components that successfully launched the Apollo missions,
while the Soviets continued to send manned missions into space. Both countries began to shift their focus onto differing
goals, though: while American had building a shuttle fleet as their primary goal the Russians decided to build the first true
orbital station, MIR.
Right now we are witnessing the first truly cooperative effort between different nations to assemble
and deliver the components for the new International Space Station. It is my fervent hope that this will lead
to important new breakthroughs in science as well as making new exploration possible, such as the further
exploration and colonization or our sister planet Mars.
Personal Views
Why did I give you that rather involved history lesson, and why did I leave out or gloss over a lot of the more modern things
such as the Space Shuttles and MIR? It's because I grew up in a time where we were achieving the impossible ... until
man set forth on the moon there was a vast number of people that simply believed it could not be done. After the
first several missions people grew disenchanted with the prospect because it became old news to the world
at large.
The same held true for the shuttle flights.....networks paused programs to cover launches but after the first few without
incident it all become so commonplace and it took a tragedy like CHALLENGER to shake the average person
from their complacency. Space travel and colonization has become a de facto concept, so much so that
many people have developed the 'been there, done that' mindset.
In short, many people seemed to have adopted the 'Hollywood' concept of space travel....through the advent
of television and movies we are able to experience the dream - all kinds of new worlds and 'alien' cultures ...
but we've forgotten the reality - men and women who risked their lives on behalf of humanity.
Why you should care
That's a pretty good question, and one of the major stumbling blocks that is always encountered when
talking about space exploration is the cost. There are a myriad of new products in homes right
now that were first developed for the space program.....things like Velcro and desiccated foods for just
a few examples. In the world at large we've also been able to make strides in the fields of medicine,
physics, chemistry, biology, and materials science all as a direct or indirect result of the space programs.
This helps our economies in the form of new jobs and new products and production methods, encourages
high-tech growth into new and even unrelated areas, and help us to better understand this ball of rock that we call home.
We've vastly expanded our knowledge of our solar system as well as our own planet.....satellites help us
to communicate with each other over vast distances, tell us where we are via GPS, and let us identify
new mineral and resource deposits as well as conduct new research into our planetary ecosystem.
What can I do?
The short answer is 'Lots of things'. The longer answer really depends on how
involved you really want to be. You can let your elected officials know that you support space
exploration by means of calls to their offices or just by filling out one of those questionnaires that they seem to send out
before every election (if I was cynical I might be tempted see an ulterior motive there). Another way
that you can help out is to join or support an organization such as the Planetary Society
which has a specific purpose and a large membership (and hence a larger collective 'voice').
If you decide to join an organization, though, make sure that their goals are your own: whether it
be more unmanned probes, manned missions to the moon or mars, or funding and completion of
the International Space Station.
There's another way to help and get you personally involved at the same time: Its called the SETI@Home project.
"What in the heck is SETI" you ask? It stands for the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. How it works is this: just like there
are telescopes scanning the sky looking at visual light sources like stars and such, there are giant radio
telescopes that scan the heavens looking for electronic signals. Since even a tiny segment of data takes a
long time to analyze, the project managers decided to tap a previously unused resource: the average PC user!
What they do is supply a program that will enable your PC to receive, process, and upload data packets that
they send you. Your PC can be set up to continually process in the background if its fast enough, run as a screen
saver whenever your computer is idle, or run as an application during times of your choosing - the method is totally up to you.
When the analysis is complete you upload the results to their computer so they can determine whether or not the data block
requires a more detailed analysis from their mainframe system. This saves them time to use their 'limited' computer power
to search the specific segments that are most likely able to contain extra-terrestrial signals. To sweeten the pot so to speak,
you get to share in the glory if YOUR computer system is the one to detect actual proof of life other than ours in the cosmos.
A few caveats, though: the program that they supply you just looks for things that MIGHT be an signal from 'ET' but could
just as easily be electronic interference or any of a vast majority of causes ..... that's why they have a really big computer to do
a far more complete analysis ..... so don't freak out if you get a strong signal or something! Another thing is that these data
blocks do take a long time to process or the SETI people could do it on their own: we're talking in terms of hours or days depending
on the speed of your PC so impatient people are going to get really disappointed quick!
If you want so sign up or are just more curious about the program, you can click on the icon to your right to go there!
Finally, one other thing that you can do is simply take the time to learn more about this new frontier. I've taken the liberty to make
a few links to places where you can go to check out specific areas of interest ..... there are many more links than I have
here but it will be up to you to discover them on your own. Don't forget there are many other great sources of information out there like
good old fashioned books or shows on cable channels like The Discovery Channel or The History Channel just to name a few!
Boone's Space Links:
Closing Remarks:
I was lucky enough to be born at the dawn of a new age for mankind...when we were taking our first fragile steps
beyond the confines of our terrestrial home and ventured forth into space. I can dimly remember watching the
television broadcast of the Apollo 17 capsule slashing down into rippled seas and the sadness in the anchorman's
voice as he announced an end to what would be the last Apollo mission.
When the space shuttle Columbia took flight for the first time and shot into the sky it was one of the most memorable moments
of my life....I can remember where I was at that instant and the great pride that I had for mankind as a people as
well as for this great nation of ours.
Just as the assassination of JFK was etched permanently in the minds of all that generation, my generation
will remember the tragic instant when seven brave men and women that lost their lives while riding the shuttle
Challenger to the stars:
| Crew of STS-51L |
|---|
Francis R. Scobee,
Commander | Michael J. Smith,
Pilot | Judith A. Resnik,
Mission Specialist 1 |
Ellison S. Onizuka,
Mission Specialist 2 | Ronald E. McNair,
Mission Specialist 3 | Gregory B. Jarvis,
Payload Specialist 1 |
| Sharon Christa McAuliffe,
Payload Specialist 2 | |
As a new chapter opens and mankind prepares to assemble and crew the first international space station
I think its fitting to keep in mind all of the successes and failures that brought us here ... to this new age where man learns
to step free from the safety of our planetary home and begin to conquer the domain of space.
