Space Technology and History

Satellite A satellite is any object, man-made or natural, that orbits another body.

1957: The Soviet Union was the first country to send up a satellite into space.

On July first 1958 the United States created the National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA as an answer to the soviet threat in space. The Apollo program was the United States answer to the soviet expansion into space. It was our goal to land a manned mission on the moon before the Soviets Union president Kennedy made this a national challenge.

Rocket Rockets are used mainly to deliver satellites into space, however, they have been known to launch manned spacecraft into orbit.

The Saturn V rocket was the workhorse of the Apollo and later Skylab missions. November 1967

Space Probe A space probe is an unmanned device sent to other planetary bodies and regions of space to take measurements and pictures.

This is a picture of the Voyager I probe which is currently the farthest man made object from earth. It has been traveling for several decades but has just began to enter the heliopause which is where the sun’s influence stops and interstellar space begins. September 1977

A lander is a space probe that lands on the surface of a planetary or other space body to take different types of scientific measurements.

A rover is a moving rolling vehicle that has the capability of traversing most types of terrain on the surface of a planetary or smaller body.

Space Shuttle Space shuttles are reusable spacecrafts that are used to take manned missions to space.

Space shuttle is a spacecraft used to release satellites or take people to the International Space Station. It was our first reusable spacecraft developed by mankind. April 1981

The shuttle Challenger went down in 1986 The shuttle Challenger went down in 1986. It was a national day of sorrow.

The shuttle Columbia also met it’s fate in 2003 The shuttle Columbia also met it’s fate in 2003. Space exploration can be dangerous even with safety measures in place, especially when strapped to explosive propellant that can combust.

Chandra X-Ray Telescope Space telescopes and observatories allow us to peer into the vastness of space and make discoveries from the creation of the universe to exoplanets around other stars. Chandra X-Ray Telescope July 1999 HUBBLE April 1990

Space Station A space station is a satellite that serves as an orbiting home for the crew while they perform scientific research and experiments.

MIR was the Soviet Union and later Russia’s Endeavour to house humans in space. What humans learned from the successes and failures of that station helped in the planning of the International Space Station. February 1986

Skylab was NASA’s attempt to build a station in space Skylab was NASA’s attempt to build a station in space. It was an answer to MIR of the Soviet Union. May 1973

International Space Station is being constructed by many different nations working together. It is the first station in space that NASA has been a part of since Skylab. November 1998

The Atlas rocket has been a staple of NASA’s planetary and other missions. The ATLAS V version of the rocket is still in use today. It can lift heavy payloads into space and has sent many interplanetary probes on the way. August 2002

The Ariane 5 Rocket is the European design of rockets to send mostly heavy payloads into orbit or planetary missions. It is one of the longest and most successful rocketry programs. June 1996

The Ares V will be the future of the NASA space program after the space shuttle is retired in 2010. It is planned to be used as the launch vehicle to return to the moon and to eventually send a manned mission to Mars.

Solar and space balloon observatories have been used by NASA for years at high altitude to study space.

Future of Space Missions and Technology. Completion of the International Space Station Mission to Europa Darwin Telescope TPF - Terrestrial Planet Finder Back to the moon with possible moon base Manned mission to Mars Solar Sail Technology Space Elevators X-Prize Contests

The International Space Station is not yet complete The International Space Station is not yet complete. They continue to add modules and additional equipment.

The proposed future mission to Europa will be extremely difficult and will be a great achievement of engineering if successful. Proposed launch 2020

The Darwin Array proposed by the European space agency would be very much like NASA’s proposed TPF or LIA but it would have two versus one additional instrument.

The TPF or Terrestrial Planet Finder is an array of telescopes in space similar to Darwin designed to find other Earth like Exoplanets.

NASA Plans to send an even larger man crew back to the moon with the hope and possibility of creating a moon base and learning from it for the Mars mission. http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/home/index.html

NASA has a plan to use what we learn from the moon and applying it to get men to Mars.

Taking all of our food to Mars adds too much weight to the mission Taking all of our food to Mars adds too much weight to the mission. However, to get air from photosynthetic plants and also to get food for consumption could be possible if we take genetically engineered seeds to Mars and plant them in a greenhouse on Mars.

Mars for less avoids heavy payloads but still get mankind to Mars. There are 2 competing plans to get to Mars right now. Mars direct which takes man there with all his supplies and then returns him. Mars for less avoids heavy payloads but still get mankind to Mars. Mars to stay involves not returning the astronauts instead sending them for their lifetime to continue the process of building a Mars base.

NASA is currently developing solar sail technology that will use nothing but the sun to propel it into space. Solar sail technology does not require any fuel onboard and could propel us up to one tenth the speed of light.

Above is an artists conception of a space elevator, to the right is a participant in NASA’s contest for space elevator tech 2010.