Rosseau, Brendan 2019 Astronomy Thesis Title

Rosseau, Brendan 2019 Astronomy Thesis Title: The Intellectual Marketplace: The Evolution of Space Exploration from Copernicus to von Braun & Beyond Advisor: Jay Pasachoff Advisor is Co-author: None of the above Second Advisor: Released: release now Authenticated User Access: Yes Contains Copyrighted Material: No The Intellectual Marketplace: The Evolution of Space Exploration from Copernicus to von Braun & Beyond by Brendan L. Rosseau Dr. Jay Pasachoff, Advisor A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Astronomy WILLIAMS COLLEGE Williamstown, Massachusetts May 8, 2019 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 2 Abstract ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3 Thesis Prologue ………………………………………………………………………………………... 4 Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………... 6 Part I: Early Astronomy ………………………………………………………………….. 11 Part II: Space Exploration in the New World ……………………………….….... 25 Part III: Spaceflight ………………………………………………………………………... 43 Looking Back & Looking Ahead ….………………………………………………….… 60 Appendix Endnotes ………………………………………………………………………………………. 64 About the Author …………………………………………………………………………… 68 Citations ……………………………………………………………………………………….. 69 1 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my great appreciation to Professor Jay Pasachoff, Field Memorial Professor of Astronomy at Williams College, for his invaluable contributions to this thesis and to my education in astronomy. I am particularly grateful for the assistance given by Dr. Alexander MacDonald, NASA Senior Economic Advisor and Emerging Space Program Executive, whose perspective and feedback helped guide my analysis. I would like to offer my special thanks to Peter Marquez, co-founder of Andart Global and former White House Director of Space Policy, for providing unique insights into and direct experiences with the field of 21st century space activities. I would also like to thank Matthew C. Weinzierl, Elbling Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, for his perspective on contemporary space economics and his helpful comments. In addition to those named above, I greatly appreciate the feedback from Professor Marek Demiański, the contributions from Dr. Michael Mineiro, the formative influences of Professor Karen Kwitter and Professor John A. Blackwell, the assistance of Wayne Hammond, and the support of my family. 2 Abstract In light of the recent emergence of a “New Space Age,” this thesis offers an expanded view of space exploration by examining the history of such efforts prior to the beginning of the conventional “Space Age” narrative. Building on the work of Dr. Alexander MacDonald in The Long Space Age, this paper introduces the concept of an “intellectual marketplace,” an evolving framework allowing for the allocation of resources towards space exploration efforts. Beginning with Copernicus, I discuss the role of the intellectual marketplace in the inception of modern astronomy. From there, I trace the evolution of this framework, demonstrating how it has not only operated as an engine for space exploration but also has played an active role in determining their purpose, style, and scope via societally-dependent mechanisms. Discussion continues through the origins of spaceflight, which, as a tool of space exploration, emerged and evolved as a product of the same intellectual marketplace. Through its analysis, this thesis aims to provide historical context that, in conjunction with the conventional “Space Age” narrative, allows for a greater understanding of the forces behind the “New Space Age,” as well as its inherent opportunities and challenges. 3 Prologue For as long as we have been capable of thought as a species, we have been fascinated with outer space. As civilizations emerged across the globe, the cultural, religious, and philosophic identities of each were inextricably linked with their understanding of the heavens. The ancient Greeks, who used logic and geometry to decipher the universe, are credited with many important early astronomical discoveries. In his treatise On the Heavens, Aristotle presented a a model for the cosmos that was widely accepted for the next two-thousand years. (The alphabetic superscripts correspond to endnotes providing additional information, located in the appendix on page 63. The numeric superscripts correspond to footnotes citing the source of the information or quotation) Across the ocean, the Mayan civilization believed that the night sky was the key to understanding the will of the gods. Their religious fervor led them to study the stars and planets closely, incorporate astronomy into architecture, and even develop a sophisticated calendar. In ancient Egypt, the cultural importance of “Maat,” or cosmic order, linked daily life with the motion of the heavens. Today, we can still find influences of the night sky woven into the ruins of their ancient cities and monuments. Consistent throughout these vastly different cultures was a desire to understand how the universe worked and where we fit into it. As society matured, so did the methods we used to pursue this desire. A new kind of thought emerged, one based upon creating hypotheses and testing them through careful observation. Today, we refer to this as science. Great minds like Galileo and Kepler applied this novel approach to the heavens. Through their efforts, outer space became a domain of incredible discovery. Though humans had gazed at the same stars for millennia, new techniques and tools completely changed our understanding of the universe. In addition to its newfound label as a realm of science, outer space continued to bear its unique cultural, religious, and philosophical connotations. Consequently, space became a battlefield between ideologies, catching people such as Galileo, Giordano Bruno, and Copernicus in the crossfire. Although both society and science have drastically changed since the tumultuous days of Copernicus, the role of outer space in shaping our identity as a species has not diminished. As we explore our universe and unlock more of its mysteries, the influence of outer space on the human psyche continues to expand. Each additional step in understanding the cosmos brings perspective on who we are and why we are here, best-described by Carl Sagan as “the continuing process of revealing to ourselves our true circumstance and condition.”1 The most tangible and incredible achievement to emerge from our human desire to understand the universe is spaceflight. Although we share our innate human curiosity with our predecessors, to them spaceflight was no more than an impossible dream. In the myth of Icarus, the ancients mused about flying to the heavens on wings of wax. Though he designed a myriad of flying machines, even the great Leonardo da Vinci was never able to get them off the ground. As recently as 1947, some college astronomy textbooks, such as the one my grandmother read in her college astronomy course, still doubted the possibility of escaping our atmosphere. However, this was soon to change. When Sputnik slipped the atmosphere in 1957, this dream of spaceflight became a reality, changing the course of human history forever. In the 62 years since Sputnik, spaceflight has evolved dramatically both in terms of how and why we choose to use space. In turn, our ongoing use of space has changed us. The ability to escape the bonds of Earth’s gravity is a great 1 Sagan, Carl. Pale Blue Dot: a Vision of the Human Future in Space. Random House, 1994. 4 power; the ways that we as a species have chosen to use this power is revealing. Nowhere else are the stakes higher or the stage as grand as in spaceflight. The story of spaceflight is one of unity and competition, hope and loss, sacrifice and promise. In a sense, to study spaceflight is to study unique human decisions with far reaching consequences. Learning from the successes and failures of the past might allow us to use spaceflight to secure a brighter future. Already spaceflight has allowed our species to advance incredibly quickly in a matter of decades. Through enabling global telecommunications, weather prediction, the Global Positioning System (GPS), and much else, outer space has become essential to modern life. At the same time, the space environment has become increasingly complex over time. Longstanding spacefaring nations with robust space programs have dynamically expanded their use of space, including treating space as a potential battlefield. More and more nations have gained spaceflight capabilities, each with their own agendas and levels of acceptable risk. Further complicating matters is the recent emergence of private corporations with bold spacefaring agendas. We now find ourselves at the outset potentially exciting chapter of space exploration, which some have called the “New Space Age.” Although the current moment is complex, rapidly evolving, and poorly understood, one thing remains certain: this New Space Age has major implications for life back here on Earth. 5 Introduction On February 6, 2018, a deafening roar tore through Cape Canaveral, shattering the serenity of a sunny mid-afternoon. Twenty-seven engines erupted simultaneously, spewing a stream of flame from the base of a rocket towering twenty-three stories tall.2 Its sleek white frame glinting in the Florida sunshine, the rocket lifted off from the Earth and quickly ascended towards the heavens. As it rose, the thousands of people who made a

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