Space: A Chronology
- 1942: German V2 becomes first rocket reaching 100km altitude; designed by Wernher von Braun, later NASA’s moon rocket creator.
- 1947: First animals launched to study space travel effects.
- 1957: Russia launches Sputnik 1, the first satellite.
- 1961: Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin becomes first human in space.
- 1962: First communications satellite launched into orbit.
- 1963: President Kennedy pledges U.S. moon landing before 1970.
- 1969: Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin land on the moon.
- 1970: China launches its first satellite.
- 1971: American astronauts use moon car on fourth, fifth, and sixth Apollo missions; first space station launched.
- 1972: Landsat program begins longest-running satellite Earth imagery acquisition.
- 1973: Russian Mars 2 probe explores Mars.
- 1977: Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 launched for outer Solar System study.
- 1979: European Space Agency’s first space launch occurs.
- 1981: First reusable space shuttle launches, designed for up to 100 orbital visits.
- 1986: MIR space station built in sections, later destroyed in 2001.
- 1990: Hubble Space Telescope launches into low Earth orbit.
- 1994: First U.S. GPS constellation launches.
- 1998: International Space Station launches.
- 2000: First permanent ISS crew moves aboard; continuous habitation since then.
- 2004: SpaceShipOne achieves first private manned space flight.
- 2008: SpaceX launches Falcon 1, first privately-funded liquid-fueled orbital rocket.
- 2011: Russian GLONASS navigation system goes global.
- 2012: Voyager 1 becomes first human-made object in interstellar space.
- 2014: ESA’s Rosetta probe reaches Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
- 2015: China aims to land Chang’e-4 probe on far side of moon.
- 2016: Voyager 2 expected to enter interstellar space.
- 2016-2019: EU/ESA’s Galileo global navigation system expected operational, offering GPS and GLONASS alternative.
- 2025-2030: U.S. National Space Policy targets asteroid mission by 2025 and Mars mission in 2030s.
References:
Applications
Satellites
The big money right now is in satellites — or at least in the data flowing through them. Data transmission enables commercial enterprise without government support. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, 6,700 satellites have been launched globally; 1,306 were operational as of June 2015 (548 American, 129 Russian, 113 Chinese). Approximately 300 miniaturized satellites were scheduled for 2016 launch. Global satellite industry revenues (2013): approximately $200 billion, growing 3% annually.
Space Observatory
Any instrument (such as the Hubble telescope) in space for observing outer space.
Space Exploration
Ongoing discovery of celestial structures, mainly conducted by astronomers with telescopes. Physical exploration uses unmanned robotic probes and human spaceflight. Risky and expensive, it typically requires government funding.
Asteroids and Asteroid Mining
Minor planets traditionally defined as Sun-orbiting objects lacking planetary disc or comet activity. Asteroid mining exploits raw materials from asteroids and near-Earth objects — base and precious metals, water, oxygen for astronaut sustenance, hydrogen, ammonia, and oxygen for rocket propellant. The U.S. Congress passed the Space Act of 2015, permitting private companies to claim mined asteroid materials as property.
In Situ Resources Utilization (ISRU)
Sourcing space resources for space-based infrastructure construction improves exploration and colonization economics. ISRU collects, processes, stores, and uses space materials encountered during exploration, replacing Earth-supplied materials.
Space Colonization
Permanent human habitation off Earth. Primary arguments: human civilization and biosphere survival during planetary-scale disasters, and the vast resources of space for human expansion.
Space Tourism
Space travel for recreational, leisure, or business purposes. Multiple companies offer future orbital and suborbital flights. Space tourists have paid $20-40 million for the experience; the last flights occurred in 2009.
Space Weapons
Weapons used in space warfare, including anti-satellite weapons and systems attacking Earth targets or disabling traveling missiles. The Outer Space Treaty forms the basis of international space law. The Treaty bars weapons of mass destruction in orbit, on the Moon, or on celestial bodies, limiting them to peaceful purposes and prohibiting weapons testing, military maneuvers, and military bases. However, the placement of conventional weapons is not prohibited.
Destinations
Suborbital Spaceflight
A spacecraft reaches space but its trajectory intersects the atmosphere or surface without completing one orbital revolution. Objects launched from Earth reaching 100 km altitude then returning are considered suborbital.
Orbital Spaceflight
A spacecraft placed on a trajectory remaining in space for at least one orbit. Sustained Earth orbit requires a free trajectory at altitude above 100 kilometers.
The Moon
Earth’s sole natural satellite.
Interplanetary Spaceflight
Travel between planets, typically within the Solar System. Interplanetary targets include:
Interstellar Travel
Hypothetical travel between stars, requiring great speed or decades-to-millennia travel times due to vast distances.
Intergalactic Travel
Hypothetical travel between galaxies. Distances between the Milky Way and nearest neighbors span hundreds of thousands to millions of light-years, making this far more technologically demanding than interstellar travel. Intergalactic distances are roughly five orders of magnitude greater than interstellar distances.
Space Agencies
Approximately 70 government space agencies exist as of 2015; thirteen possess launch capability. Six agencies have full launch capabilities: China National Space Administration (CNSA), European Space Agency (ESA), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), NASA, and Russian RFSA (Roscosmos) — capable of launching and recovering multiple satellites, deploying cryogenic engines, and operating probes. Only three — NASA, RFSA, and CNSA — possess human spaceflight capability.
Private Investment
Expanding government space programs, increased global funding, and commercial space enterprise emphasis attract significant private investment. Traditional defense and government contracts remain substantial; growing startups focus on improving space travel economics and creating commercially viable space activities.
Human Spaceflight
Human spaceflight involves space travel with an onboard crew. Crewed spacecraft operate directly versus remote or autonomous operation. The first human spaceflight was launched by the Soviet Union on April 12, 1961, as part of the Vostok program with cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. Humans have continuously occupied the International Space Station for over 15 years.
Spacecraft
A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed for outer space flight, used for communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, planetary exploration, and cargo transport.
Spacecraft categories include suborbital flights, orbital flights, human spaceflight spacecraft, and robotic spacecraft that operate autonomously or telerobotically. Interstellar probes such as Pioneer 10/11, Voyager 1/2, and New Horizons travel on trajectories leaving the Solar System. Reentry methods use either nonwinged space capsules or winged spaceplanes.
Launch
A rocket launch is the takeoff phase of rocket flight. Orbital spaceflight or interplanetary launch typically originates from fixed ground locations but may occur from floating platforms (such as the Sea Launch vessel) or potentially from super-heavy aircraft.
Spaceports
A spaceport is a spacecraft launch and receiving site. Traditionally referring to orbital or interplanetary launch-capable sites, the term now includes suborbital flight locations. Space stations and proposed Moon bases may also be called spaceports as bases for further journeys.
Space Law
- The 1967 Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies (the “Outer Space Treaty“).
- The 1968 Agreement on the Rescue of Astronauts, the Return of Astronauts and the Return of Objects Launched into Outer Space (the “Rescue Agreement“).
- The 1972 Convention on International Liability for Damage Caused by Space Objects (the “Liability Convention“).
- The 1975 Convention on Registration of Objects Launched into Outer Space (the “Registration Convention“).
- The 1979 Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies (the “Moon Treaty“).
