The Last Frontier

Conquering Outer Space

Introduction

Nearly every child has dreamed of what it must be like to be able to fly. Watch a sparrow flit between the trees, a crow flying in its proverbial straight line, or an eagle circling high above the peaks, and you have witnessed the elusive. Such grandiose dreams have captivated mankind’s imagination for centuries.

Ancient Greek mythology contains references to human flight, the Italian Leonardo Da Vinci drew designs for a flying machine in the late 15th century, and during the 19th century, aviation pioneers began seriously experimenting with gliding. In 1903, the Wright Brothers achieved the ultimate when they succeeded in realising the dream of powered, controlled, heavier-than-air flight. From that date on, the skies were no longer the realm of birds alone.

The power to ascend the bounds of the atmosphere was not enough for mankind for very long. His innate desire to conquer all that stood in his way pushed him onwards. Now that the skies were mastered, what next? Although the concept of escaping the earth’s atmosphere had been explored before-Jules Verne’s From the Earth to the Moon was published in 1873-no one seriously considered, much less attempted such a feat until well into the twentieth century. This was most probably due to the fact that the atmosphere needed to be within reach first.

To escape the pull of earth’s gravity, it is necessary to attain a speed of 11.2 kilometres per second at the earth’s surface. This speed is termed escape velocity, and decreases with higher altitude. This speed does not, however, take into account atmospheric resistance. Thus, in order to conquer the last frontier, it was necessary for mankind to devise some method of conveyance with enough power to exceed escape velocity, and then some.

Not that this method of conveyance had yet to be invented. It seemed obvious to the pioneers of space flight, as well as the imaginative Jules Verne, that to escape the clutches of earth’s gravity would require the use of a rocket. The science of rocketry was an old one, and it was to this that the pioneers of space flight turned.

The history of the rocket

The history of the rocket extends far back through military history. It was a process of slow but steady developments, culminating in the heady rush of the technological rivalry of the 20th century.

“Long before the Christian era burning materials were being catapulted into besieged towns, and tubes of incendiary mixtures tied to the shafts of arrows had set fire to many a wooden sailing ship.”(Gatland, K, 1978, p.224)1 Initially-apart from in China, where religious festivals were celebrated with fireworks-the science of rocketry, was used for purely military purposes. This has often been the case with technological development-military conflict hastens the growth of science. Once the military grasp the importance of a particular technology in gaining an edge over the enemy, they invariably encourage, and facilitate the development of that technology. It is a somewhat sad reminder that much of humanity’s accomplishments have been carved into the pages of history with the edge of the sword.