The exploration of space is the study of celestial bodies from an unmanned spacecraft or from a space station in orbit. The scientific benefits of space exploration include enhancing human knowledge and technology, stimulating innovation, and expanding global markets. The exploration of space is also a source of national pride.
The first voyages of manned space exploration were motivated by the Cold War competition between the United States and the Soviet Union to demonstrate which nation could claim technological superiority. In the aftermath of the Cold War, a new rationale for space exploration emerged. Countries now largely fund their space programs to benefit life on Earth.
While the earliest space exploration was conducted by governments, private companies such as Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic and Elon Musk’s SpaceX are now taking a major role in suborbital and orbital space travel, and satellite technology has become cheaper to develop and launch. Some of these new private firms are also experimenting with extracting resources from the Moon and near-Earth asteroids, and using solar energy to power their satellites and refueling stations.
In addition to satellites, spacecraft are used for a wide variety of purposes, including remote sensing of the Earth and other planets, communications, and launching people into space. They are propelled into space by powerful rocket engines and rely on complex calculations of inertia and gravity to overcome the pull of the Earth’s atmosphere and move from one orbit to another, or “slingshot” across the solar system.
About the Author
