Space Exploration - the investigation of physical conditions in space and on stars, planets, and their moons through the use of artificial satellites (spacecraft that orbit the earth), space probes (spacecraft that pass through the solar system and that may or may not orbit another celestial body), and spacecraft with human crews.

Satellites and Probes

Although studies from earth using optical and radio telescopes had accumulated much data on the nature of celestial bodies, it was not until after World War II that the development of powerful rockets made direct space exploration a technological possibility. The first artificial satellite, Sputnik I, was launched by the USSR (now Russia) on Oct. 4, 1957, and spurred the dormant U.S. program into action, leading to an international competition popularly known as the "space race." Explorer I, the first American satellite, was launched on Jan. 31, 1958. Although earth-orbiting satellites have by far accounted for the great majority of launches in the space program, even more information on the moon, other planets, and the sun has been acquired by space probes.

Lunar Probes

In the decade following Sputnik I, the United States and the USSR between them launched about 50 space probes to explore the moon. The first probes were intended either to pass very close to the moon (flyby) or to crash into it (hard landing). Later probes made soft landings with instruments intact and achieved stable orbits around the moon. Each of these four objectives required increasingly greater rocket power and more precise maneuvering; successive launches in the Soviet Luna series were the first to accomplish each objective. Luna 2 made a hard lunar landing in Sept., 1959, and Luna 3 took pictures of the moon's far side as the probe flew by in Nov., 1959. Luna 9 soft-landed in Feb., 1966, and Luna 10 orbited the moon in Apr., 1966; both sent back many television pictures to earth. In addition to the 24 lunar probes in the Luna program, the Soviets also launched five circumlunar probes in its Zond program.

Early American successes generally lagged behind Soviet accomplishments by several months but provided more detailed scientific information. The U.S. program did not bear fruit until 1964, when Rangers 7,8, and 9 transmitted thousands of pictures, many taken at altitudes of less than 1 mi (1.6 km) just before impact and showing craters only a few feet in diameter. Two years later, the Surveyor series began a program of soft landings on the moon. Surveyor 1 touched down in June, 1966; in addition to television cameras, it carried instruments to measure soil strength and composition. The Surveyor program established that the moon's surface was solid enough to support a spacecraft carrying astronauts.

In Aug., 1966, the United States successfully launched the first Lunar Orbiter, which took pictures of both sides of the moon as well as the first pictures of the earth from the moon's vicinity. The Orbiter's primary mission was to locate suitable landing sites for the Apollo Lunar Module, but in the process it also discovered the lunar mascons, regions of large concentration of mass on the moon's surface. Between May, 1966, and Nov., 1968, the United States launched seven Surveyors and five Lunar Orbiters. Clementine, launched in 1994, engaged in a systematic mapping of the lunar surface. In 1998, Lunar Prospector orbited the moon in a low polar orbit investigating possible polar ice deposits, but a controlled crash near the south pole detected no water.

Interplanetary Probes

While the bulk of space exploration initially was directed at the earth-moon system, the focus gradually shifted to other members of the solar system. The U.S. Mariner program studied Venus and Mars, the two planets closest to the earth; the Soviet Venera series also studied Venus. From 1962 to 1971, these probes confirmed the high surface temperature and thick atmosphere of Venus, discovered signs of recent volcanism and possible water erosion on Mars, and investigated Mercury. Between 1971 and 1973 the Soviet Union launched six successful probes as part of its Mars program. Exploration of Mars continued with the U.S. Viking landings on the Martian surface. Two Viking spacecraft arrived on Mars in 1976. Their mechanical arms scooped up soil samples for automated tests that searched for photosynthesis, respiration, and metabolism by any microorganisms that might be present; one test suggested at least the possibility of organic activity. The Soviet Phobos 1 and 2 missions were unsuccessful in 1988. The U.S. Magellan spacecraft succeeded in orbiting Venus in 1990, returning a complete radar map of the planet's hidden surface. The Japanese probes Sakigake and Suisei and the European Space Agency's probe Giotto both rendezvoused with Halley's comet in 1986, and Giotto also came within 125 mi (200 km) of the nucleus of the comet Grigg-Skjellerup in 1992. The U.S. probe Ulysses returned data about the poles of the sun in 1994, and the ESA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) was put into orbit in 1995. Launched in 1996 to study asteroids and comets, the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) probe made flybys of the asteroids Mathilde (1997) and Eros (1999) and began orbiting the latter in 2000. The Mars Pathfinder and Mars Global Surveyor, both of which reached Mars in 1997, were highly successful, the former in analyzing the Martian surface and the latter in mapping it. The ESA Mars Express, launched in 2003, began orbiting Mars later that year, and although its Beagle 2 lander failed to establish contact, the orbiter has sent back data. Spirit and Opportunity, NASA rovers, landed successfully on Mars in 2004.

Space probes have also been aimed at the outer planets, with spectacular results. One such probe, Pioneer 10, passed through the asteroid belt in 1973, then became the first object made by human beings to escape the solar system. In 1974, Pioneer 11 photographed Jupiter's equatorial latitudes and its moons, and in 1979 it made the first direct observations of Saturn. Voyagers 1 and 2, which were launched in 1977, took advantage of a rare alignment of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune to explore all four planets. Passing as close as 3,000 mi (4,800 km) to each planet's surface, the Voyagers discovered new rings, explored complex magnetic fields, and returned detailed photographs of the outer planets and their unique moons. Launched in 1989, the Galileo spacecraft followed a circuitous route that enabled it to return data about Venus (1990), the moon (1992), and the asteroids 951 Gaspra (1991) and 243 Ida (1993) before it orbited Jupiter (1995–2003); it also returned data about the Jupiter's atmosphere and its largest moons (Io, Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto). The joint U.S.-ESA probe Cassini, launched in 1997, will explore Saturn, its rings, and some of its moons upon arriving in 2004.

Human Space Exploration

Human spaceflight has progressed from the simple to the complex, starting with suborbital flights; subsequent highlights included the launching of a single astronaut in orbit, the launching of several astronauts in a single capsule, the rendezvous and docking of two spacecraft, the attainment of lunar orbit, and the televised landing of an astronaut on the moon. The first person in earth orbit was a Soviet cosmonaut, Yuri Gagarin, in Vostok 1 on Apr. 12, 1961. The American Mercury program had its first orbital success in Feb., 1962, when John Glenn circled the earth three times; a flight of 22 orbits was achieved by Mercury in May, 1963. In Oct., 1964, three Soviet cosmonauts were launched in a Voskhod spacecraft. During the second Voskhod flight in Mar., 1965, a cosmonaut left the capsule to make the first "walk in space."

The first launch of the Gemini program, carrying two American astronauts, occurred a few days after the Soviet spacewalk. The United States made its first spacewalk during Gemini 4, and subsequent flights established techniques for rendezvous and docking in space. The first actual docking of two craft in space was achieved in Mar., 1966, when Gemini 8 docked with a crewless vehicle. In Oct., 1967, two Soviet Cosmos spacecraft performed the first automatic crewless rendezvous and docking. Gemini and Voskhod were followed by the American Apollo and the Soviet Soyuz programs, respectively.

The Apollo Program

In 1961, President Kennedy had committed the United States to the goal of landing astronauts on the moon and bringing them safely back to earth by the end of the decade. The resulting Apollo program was the largest scientific and technological undertaking in history. Apollo 8 was the first craft to orbit both the earth and the moon (Dec., 1968); on July 20, 1969, astronauts Neil A. Armstrong and Edwin E. ("Buzz") Aldrin, Jr., stepped out onto the moon, while a third astronaut, Michael Collins, orbited the moon in the command ship. In all, there were 17 Apollo missions and 6 lunar landings. Apollo 15 marked the first use of the Lunar Rover, a jeeplike vehicle. The scientific mission of Apollo centered around an automated geophysical laboratory, ALSEP (Apollo Lunar Surface Experimental Package). Much was learned about the physical constitution and early history of the moon, including information about magnetic fields, heat flow, volcanism, and seismic activity. The total lunar rock sample returned to earth weighed nearly 900 lb (400 kg).

Apollo moon flights were launched by the three-stage Saturn V rocket, which developed 7.5 million lb (3.4 million kg) of thrust at liftoff. At launch, the total assembly stood 363 ft (110 m) high and weighed more than 3,000 tons. The Apollo spacecraft itself weighed 44 tons and stood nearly 60 ft (20 m) high. It was composed of three sections: the command, service, and lunar modules. In earth orbit, the lunar module (LM) was freed from its protective compartment and docked to the nose of the command