DOCSLIB.ORG

Space Research Institute in Times of Change. Glimpses of the Past and Visions of the Future

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Space Research Institute in Times of Change. Glimpses of the Past and Visions of the Future УДК 629.78(091) ББК 39.6г. ISBN 978-5-00015-003-0 Space Research Institute in Times of Change. Glimpses of the Past and Visions of the Future International Forum “Space Science: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” 30 September – 2 October 2015, Moscow Selected Papers from the Session This collection of essays gives a very brief overview into the history of Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IKI RAN) and some of its most promi- nent events. The book is based on selected talks given at International Forum “Space Science: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow” (Moscow, 2015) dedicated to the 50th an- niversary of IKI RAN. Keywords: space research, space exploration, space, history, Space Research Institute, Academy of Sciences, history, international collaboration, proceedings. © Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IKI RAN), 2016 ALONG THE THORNY PASS OF SPACE SCIENCE. 50-yeArs-jOURNEY* Lev M. Zelenyi, Moscow, Russia Space Research Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia My task is to tell you the very brief history of Space Research Institute, which turned 50 in 2015, and, thus, was established as far back in time as 1965. The date itself est no‑ men. The second half of 1950s was the very start of political and cultural ottepel (liter- ally, “thaw”) in the USSR, which brought to life new generation of poets, artists, mu- sicians, and — not to the least extent — scientists. The main change was perhaps that the “iron curtain” was gradually lifted, which had been separating the country from the most of the outer world during the cold war. The spirit of international friendship permeated or started to permeate all spheres of life. The 6th World Festival of Youth and Students in Moscow in 1957 designated these changes in the foreign and inner policy, and paved the way for future international projects, scientific among others. It is true that science was largely dependent on military goals; and even more so for rocketry, which was considered by many — luckily, not by all — to be merely the weapon to deliver special missiles to potential targets. However, those who drove the development of rockets saw farther and were able to persuade the leaders of the na- tions that entering outer space can be a goal in itself, a matter of national pride, and a way to new discoveries and inevitably technologies. October 4, 1957, Sputnik was launched, the first man-made object to enter space. The international response was immense, and outside the USSR even larger than within. The newspapers praised Soviet designers and nation leaders, and mocked at their political rivals, the USA. Oh, little Sputnik, flying high With made-in-Moscow beep, You tell the world it’s a Commie sky and Uncle Sam’s asleep. G. Mennen Williams, the Democratic governor of Michigan, published in The Washington Post Sputnik was, however, obviously not merely the nine-day wonder. The main outcome for science was that space age truly began, which meant new opportunities to study the outer space and other planets in situ, to see the Earth from outside, and perceive the sky beyond the thick veil of terrestrial atmosphere. Going back to the USSR, one should be glad that by that time strong cooperation and friendship bound two key figures in rocket industry and science: Sergey Pavlovich Korolev and Mstislav Vsevolodovich Keldysh. An interesting twist of history is that now the name of Korolev is acclaimed all around the world, while that of Keldysh stays somewhat in shadow even in Russia. Back then, in 1950 and 1960s it was vice versa. Sergey Korolev, totally classified person, was referred to as anonymous “Chief Designer” in media, and Mstislav Keldysh was a brilliant academic star, the member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, its vice-president (1960–61), and then pres- ident from 1961 to 1975 (he passed away in 1978). But some part of his scientific life was also “top secret”. Few knew that he and his colleagues worked on mathematical * The paper is based on the talk given at plenary session on October 2, 2015, in the Russian Academy of Sciences. Necessary supplements and amendments were made to reflect the latest events and changes in Russian space program, adopted in March 2016 — ed. 5 Lev Zelenyi theory for jet aviation, and later for rocket engineers. Later, Keldysh headed a special commission in the Academy of Sciences, which coordinated the works on the instru- ments for the first full-fledged scientific satellite (launched as Sputnik 3 in May, 1958). Shortly afterwards he became the leader of space research in the USSR, which meant that under his leadership a consistent and progressive program was formed, which included in the first place the exploration of the Moon and other planets, ac- companied by studies of the space itself and distant objects (we leave out manned space flights, albeit they too were the matter for academic science, but that is another story, so to say). Sputnik, space and the First Secretary of the Communist Party — Nikita Khruschev in media The First Sputnik Mstislav Keldysh and Sergey Korolev 6 Along the Thorny Pass of Space Science. 50-years-journe Keldysh headed the Interdepartmental Scientific and Technical Council for Space Research at the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, established in 1958. Space exploration began with Sturm und Drang, but soon it was clear that real exploration requires some system, and some coordinating center. On July 5, 1963, Mstislav Keldysh sent a letter to the Central Committee of the Communist Party, sug- gesting a special Joint Space Research Institute to be established within the Academy of Sciences. Such an institute would be entitled to develop the program of space re- search and exploration for the sake of fundamental science, and coordinate the works on its implementation, as well as develop and build dedicated instruments for space experiments, test them, and install aboard scientific spacecraft. The institute would be “combined” from the groups and institutions already involved in space science, hence the word “joint” in its name. In the letter Keldysh properly mentioned the international space race: “Such in- stitute will provide and ensure the leading position of the Soviet Union in space explo- ration in the nearest years and set off its achievements against many specialized space science centres of the USA”. The proposal was approved and accepted, to a large extent thanks to Nikita Sergeevich Khruschev, the First Secretary of Central Committee of the USSR Communist Party. Space in the late 1950s became his favourite child. It is hard to overestimate the role Khruschev played for rapid launch of the national space pro- gram. However, while the grand success of Apollo’s program is justly tributed to the US president Kennedy, in Russia the memory of Khruschev was meticulously erased from public awareness, after he was succeeded by Leonid Brezhnev. Classified Decree of the USSR Council of Ministers No. 392-147 «On the es- tablishment of the Space Research Institute» was issued on May 5, 1965 (declassified in 2010). It stated that the Institute “is the head organization for science research in space studies, exploration of the Moon and planets of the Solar System, and consti- tutes the scientific and methodological base for Interdepartmental Scientific and Technical Council for Space Research at the Academy of Sciences of the USSR” (this Council was dismissed in 1992, but revived as Council on Space of the Russian Academy of Sciences, which I am privileged to head today since 2013). The site for the future Institute was chosen in the outskirts of Moscow, near the highway to Kaluga. Now it’s the intersection of two large streets, and — what an irony — bears the name “Keldysh’s Square”. The actual construction of the Institute’s building lasted for many years, and those who work in IKI from its inception remem- ber first “temporary” two-floor houses, which copied standard design of Soviet barber shops. They are still in use, by the way, proving an old wisdom that nothing is more stable than temporary structures. The staff of Space Research Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, or IKI RAN (IKI is Russian abbreviation of the full name and in English it is also used as is), in accordance with the initial plan, was completed with scientists and engi- neers from many other institutes, universities, and design bureaus. Namely, from the Academy there were people from the Interdepartmental Council, who provided organizational backbone for the newborn Institute, and laboratories from Institute for Applied Mathematics (again, the child of Keldysh), the Institute for the Physics of the Atmosphere, Lebedev Institute of Physics, Institute for Computing Technics, Institute for Nuclear Physics (Novosibirsk), Vernadsky Institute for Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Institute for Radioelectronics. 7 Lev Zelenyi Decree of the USSR Council of Ministers establishing IKI Along the Thorny Pass of Space Science. 50-years-journe A bulk of scientists came from Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU). They were extremely active in the very first experiments in space, including Sternberg Astronomical Institute and Skobeltsyn Institute for Nuclear Physics, which belong to MSU. Then there were a number of Moscow educational institutes: Moscow Institute for Physics and Technology, Aviation Institute, Energy Institute, State Pedagogical Institute, Institute for Geodesy and Cartography, Institute for Telecommunications. From industry came colleagues of S. P. Korolev from Special Design Bureau 1 (OKB-1, future Energia Rocket and Space Corporation), Russian Scientific and Research Institute for Space Instrumentation, and other. There were also people from Institute for Atomic Energy (Kurchatov Institute), Meteorological Agency, and some other institutions. Such a list meant that the Institute was comprised of people with very different mentalities and approaches to science and space research, who were put into a kind of “melting pot”.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 2007 February
    ARTICLE .1 Macro-Perspectives beyond the World System Joseph Voros Swinburne University of Technology Australia Abstract This paper continues a discussion begun in an earlier article on nesting macro-social perspectives to also consider and explore macro-perspectives beyond the level of the current world system and what insights they might reveal for the future of humankind. Key words: Macrohistory, Human expansion into space, Extra-terrestrial civilisations Introduction This paper continues a train of thought begun in an earlier paper (Voros 2006) where an approach to macro-social analysis based on the idea of "nesting" social-analytical perspectives was described and demonstrated (the essence of which, for convenience, is briefly summarised here). In that paper, essential use was made of a typology of social-analytical perspectives proposed by Johan Galtung (1997b), who suggested that human systems could be viewed or studied at three main levels of analysis: the level of the individual person; the level of social systems; and the level of world systems. Distinctions can be made between different foci of study. The focus may be on the stages and causes of change through time (termed diachronic), or it could be at some specific point in time (termed synchronic). As well, the focus may be on a specific single case (termed idiographic), in contrast to seeking regularities, patterns, or generalised "laws" (termed nomo- thetic). In this way, there are four main types of perspectives found at any particular level of analy- sis. This conception is shown here in slightly adapted form in Table 1.1 Journal of Futures Studies, February 2007, 11(3): 1 - 28 Journal of Futures Studies Table 1: Three Levels of Social Analysis Source: Adapted from Galtung (1997b).
    [Show full text]
  • The Start of the Manned Space Race by Andrew J
    The Start of the Manned Space Race by Andrew J. LePage November 1998 Introduction of Sputnik 1 and 2 in October and November of 1957 changed everything. At the same time NACA and the USAF were studying manned spaceflight (see The Beginnings of The first Sputnik launches were to affect the manned America's Man in Space Program in the October space program in several ways. The impact the 1998 issue of SpaceViews), comparable efforts were launch of Sputnik 1 had on the West led Soviet quietly taking place independently in the Soviet Primer Nikita Khrushchev to exploit space missions Union . As with virtually every other aspect of the for their propaganda value. Development of more Soviet Union's early space program, Chief Designer advanced and spectacular missions like the manned Sergei P. Korolev and his OKB-1 (Experimental satellite program were immediately approved and Design Bureau No. 1) lead the way. All during the placed on the fast track. Also at the insistence of 1950s when Korolev and his colleague, Mikhail K. Khrushchev, Sputnik 2 was launched with a dog on Tikhonravov of NII-4 (Scientific Research Institute board. While thermal control problems marred the No. 4), were pushing their original Earth satellite mission, it did demonstrate that weightlessness would proposal, it also included plans to send probes to the not be a major hazard for a human (see Sputnik 2: Moon and men into orbit. When the satellite The First Animal in Space in the November 1997 proposal was finally adopted by the Soviet issue of SpaceViews). As a result, Korolev scrapped government on January 30, 1956, the lunar probe and his initial, more conservative approach and moved manned satellite projects were also given the green ahead with a much more aggressive plan.
    [Show full text]
  • Free PDF Version
    TONY CZARNECKI POSTHUMANS - II Democracy For a Human Federation REFORMING DEMOCRACY FOR HUMANITY’S COEXISTENCE WITH SUPERINTELLIGENCE London, July 2020 Democracy for a Human Federation Reforming Democracy for Humanity’s Coexistence with Superintelligence © Tony Czarnecki 2020 The right of Tony Czarnecki to be identified as the author of this book has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This edition, July 2020 First published in 2019 by Sustensis ISBN: 9781689622332 London, July 2020 For any questions or comments please visit: http://www.sustensis.co.uk 2 For my grandson Leon 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS POSTHUMANS - II ................................................................................................................................ 1 FOREWORD TO POSTHUMANS SERIES ........................................................................................ 7 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................... 8 PART 1 A PERILOUS ROAD TOWARDS A HUMAN FEDERATION ........................................ 11 CHAPTER 1 HUMANITY AT A TURNING POINT ........................................................................ 12 WHAT MAKES US HUMAN? ................................................................................................................. 12 LIVING IN THE WORLD OF EXPONENTIAL CHANGE ............................................................................. 13 IS THIS THE END OF HISTORY? ...........................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Galactic-Scale Macro-Engineering: Looking for Signs of Other Intelligent Species, As an Exercise in Hope for Our Own
    Galactic-scale macro-engineering: Looking for signs of other intelligent species, as an exercise in hope for our own * Joseph Voros Senior Lecturer in Strategic Foresight Faculty of Business & Law, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia Abstract If we consider Big History as simply ‘our’ example of the process of cosmic evolution playing out, then we can seek to broaden our view of our possible fate as a species by asking questions about what paths or trajectories other species’ own versions of Big History might take or have taken. This paper explores the broad outlines of possible scenarios for the evolution of long-lived intelligent engineering species—scenarios which might have been part of another species’ own Big History story, or which may yet lie ahead in our own distant future. A sufficiently long-lived engineering-oriented species may decide to undertake a program of macro-engineering projects that might eventually lead to a re-engineered galaxy so altered that its artificiality may be detectable from Earth. We consider activities that lead ultimately to a galactic structure consisting of a central inner core surrounded by a more distant ring of stars separated by a relatively sparser ‘gap’, where star systems and stellar materials may have been removed, ‘lifted’ or turned into Dyson Spheres. When one looks to the sky, one finds that such galaxies do indeed exist—including the beautiful ringed galaxy known as ‘Hoag’s Object’ (PGC 54559) in the constellation Serpens. This leads us to pose the question: Is Hoag’s Object an example of galaxy-scale macro-engineering? And this suggests a program of possible observational activities and theoretical explorations, several of which are presented here, that could be carried out in order to begin to investigate this beguiling question.
    [Show full text]
  • The Soviet Space Program
    C05500088 TOP eEGRET iuf 3EEA~ NIE 11-1-71 THE SOVIET SPACE PROGRAM Declassified Under Authority of the lnteragency Security Classification Appeals Panel, E.O. 13526, sec. 5.3(b)(3) ISCAP Appeal No. 2011 -003, document 2 Declassification date: November 23, 2020 ifOP GEEAE:r C05500088 1'9P SloGRET CONTENTS Page THE PROBLEM ... 1 SUMMARY OF KEY JUDGMENTS l DISCUSSION 5 I. SOV.IET SPACE ACTIVITY DURING TfIE PAST TWO YEARS . 5 II. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC FACTORS AFFECTING FUTURE PROSPECTS . 6 A. General ............................................. 6 B. Organization and Management . ............... 6 C. Economics .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ...... .. 8 III. SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL FACTORS ... 9 A. General .. .. .. .. .. 9 B. Launch Vehicles . 9 C. High-Energy Propellants .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 11 D. Manned Spacecraft . 12 E. Life Support Systems . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 15 F. Non-Nuclear Power Sources for Spacecraft . 16 G. Nuclear Power and Propulsion ..... 16 Te>P M:EW TCS 2032-71 IOP SECl<ET" C05500088 TOP SECRGJ:. IOP SECREI Page H. Communications Systems for Space Operations . 16 I. Command and Control for Space Operations . 17 IV. FUTURE PROSPECTS ....................................... 18 A. General ............... ... ···•· ................. ····· ... 18 B. Manned Space Station . 19 C. Planetary Exploration . ........ 19 D. Unmanned Lunar Exploration ..... 21 E. Manned Lunar Landfog ... 21 F. Applied Satellites ......... 22 G. Scientific Satellites ........................................ 24 V. INTERNATIONAL SPACE COOPERATION ............. 24 A. USSR-European Nations .................................... 24 B. USSR-United States 25 ANNEX A. SOVIET SPACE ACTIVITY ANNEX B. SOVIET SPACE LAUNCH VEHICLES ANNEX C. SOVIET CHRONOLOGICAL SPACE LOG FOR THE PERIOD 24 June 1969 Through 27 June 1971 TCS 2032-71 IOP SLClt~ 70P SECRE1- C05500088 TOP SEGR:R THE SOVIET SPACE PROGRAM THE PROBLEM To estimate Soviet capabilities and probable accomplishments in space over the next 5 to 10 years.' SUMMARY OF KEY JUDGMENTS A.
    [Show full text]
  • The Rae Table of Earth Satellites 1957-1986 the Rae Table Ofearth Satellites
    THE RAE TABLE OF EARTH SATELLITES 1957-1986 THE RAE TABLE OFEARTH SATELLITES 1957-1986 compiled at The Royal Aircraft Establishment, Famborough, Hants, England by D.G. King-Dele, FRS, D.M.C. Walker, PhD, J.A. Pilkington, BSc, A.N. Winterbottom, H. Hiller, BSc and G.E. Perry, MBE The Table is a chronological list of the 2869 launches of satellites and space vehicles between 1957 and the end of 1986, giving the name and international designation of each satellite and its associated rocket(s), with the date of launch, lifetime (actual or estimated), mass, shape, dimensions and at least one set of orbital parameters. Other fragments associated with a launch, and space vehicles that escape from the Earth's influence, are given without details. Including fragments, more than 17000 satellites appear in the 893 pages of the tabulation, and there is a full Index. M TOCKTON S P R E S S © Crown copyright 1981, 1983, 1987 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 3rd edition 1987 978-0-333-39275-1 Published by permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without permission. Published in the United States and Canada by STOCKTON PRESS, 1987 15 East 26th Street, New York, N.Y. 10010 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The R.A.E. table of earth satellites, 1957-1986. Rev. ed. of: The RAE table of earth satellites, 1957- 1980. 2nd ed. 1981. 1. Artificial satellites- Registers.
    [Show full text]
  • COMMISSION 51: BIOASTRONOMY (BIOASTRONOMIE) Report of Meetings, on 25,26,30 July 1991
    COMMISSION 51: BIOASTRONOMY (BIOASTRONOMIE) Report of Meetings, on 25,26,30 July 1991 PRESIDENT: George Marx VICE-PRESIDENT: Ron Brown SECRETARY: Jean Heidman 26. July 1991: Business meeting Commission 51 deals with scientific problems related to Bioastronomy, including dis­ cussions concerning the emergence of life and intelligence in the Universe, designation of the promising sites, empirical search for life and technology, finally the possible connection of the terrestrial life to astronomical factors. This Commission was formed at the iniciative of Michael Papagiannis (Boston University) in 1982 and it worked under the chairmanship of Michael Papagiannis, Francis Drake and George Marx since then. The Commission counts well above 300 members from astronomy and interdisciplinary fields. Members of the Commission were reached by the Bioastronomy News, edited by Michael Papagiannis. The president of the Commission 51 reported about the activities as follows: Meetings on Bioastronomy at the IAU General Assemblies were well attended by the members of IAU (beyond the membership of the Commission 51), and by invited experts from other sciences since 1979. This proves that the interdisciplinary approach of our Commission corresponds to a definite need. The advances of our scientific understanding of planet and comet formation, the exploration of the Solar System by space probes, the empirical and theoretical investigation of the planetary atmospheres, the clarification of the early history of our own planet, the confrontation of astronomical and geological evidences with the laboratory experiments concerning chemical evolution, the grand theories of the origins of life based upon our most recent scientific knowledge, finally the spectacular advances of radio astronomy due to the fast development of computer technique made bioastronomy to a solid and respected branch of research in the 1980-es.
    [Show full text]
  • Sputnik-Inspired Educational Reform and Changes in Private Returns in America Hyeonggu Cha Clemson University, [email protected]
    Clemson University TigerPrints All Dissertations Dissertations 12-2015 Soviet Launch of Sputnik: Sputnik-Inspired Educational Reform and Changes in Private Returns in America Hyeonggu Cha Clemson University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations Part of the Public Policy Commons Recommended Citation Cha, Hyeonggu, "Soviet Launch of Sputnik: Sputnik-Inspired Educational Reform and Changes in Private Returns in America" (2015). All Dissertations. 1550. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/1550 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations at TigerPrints. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TigerPrints. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SOVIET LAUNCH OF SPUTNIK: SPUTNIK-INSPIRED EDUCATIONAL REFORM AND CHANGES IN PRIVATE RETURNS IN AMERICA A Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of Clemson University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Policy Studies by Hyeonggu Cha December 2015 Accepted by: Dr. Curtis Simon, Committee Chair Dr. Robert Tollison Dr. Holley Ulbrich Dr. Joseph Stewart ABSTRACT On October 4th 1957, the Soviet Union launched the world’s first man-made satellite, Sputnik 1, into an elliptical low Earth orbit. This surprise triggered an arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union, as well as science-oriented educational reform in the U.S. Sputnik sparked changes for the U.S. in military, politics, policies, and education. The launch of Sputnik woke Americans up from complacency came from technology, science, and educational superiority. Educational reform started with emphasizing science and defense education and it was expanded to all levels of education.
    [Show full text]
  • Long Futures and Type Iv Civilizations
    PERIODICA POLYTECHNICA SER. SOC. MAN. SCI. VOL. 12, NO. 1, PP. 83–89 (2004) LONG FUTURES AND TYPE IV CIVILIZATIONS Zoltán GALÁNTAI Department of Innovation Studies and History of Technology Budapest University of Technology and Economics H–1111 Hungary, Budapest, Stoczek u. 2., bg. St., gfloor 7. Tel: (+36) 1 463–2141, Fax: (+36) 1 463–1412 e-mail: [email protected] Received: September 7, 2003 Abstract The emergence of the physical eschatology in the last decades led to an opportunity to ask questions about the fate of our Universe from a cosmologist’s point of view and to study mankind’s possible future on a cosmological scale, while we can define some theoretical limits of a civilization’s possible developments. Keywords: physical eschatology, Kardashev civilizations, Type IV civilization, criticism of Anthropic Cosmological Principle, artificial and natural signs. “Whether the details of my calculations turn out to be correct or not, I think I have shown that there are good scientific reasons for taking seriously the possibility that life and intelligence can succeed in mold- ing this universe of ours to their own purposes.” (Freeman Dyson: Time Without End: Physics and Biology in an Open Universe) 1. Introduction We could imagine a physicist floating in his laboratory in the outer space, far from any celestial body. That physicist would never discover the gravitational force without the closeness of big masses like our planet, wrote Astronomer Royal Sir Martin Rees, and similarly, the existence of some unknown forces is also imaginable, whose effects are not detectable on the scale of our Planetary System – but they would play an important role either in the centers of galaxies or in cosmology [1].
    [Show full text]
  • Astrobiology News for September 2013: Searching for WISE Civilizations
    Astrobiology News for September 2013: Searching for WISE Civilizations Back in April, I posed the question, “Is there life beyond Earth, and, if so, how can we detect it?” as one of the driving questions of Astrobiology, but let’s face it, for most of us, the more interesting question is, “Is there intelligent life beyond Earth, and, if so, how can we detect it?” Many of you may have heard of the Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence (SETI). As Jill Tarter, who holds the Bernard M. Oliver Chair for SETI Research at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, has often pointed out, it’s not clear how to search for intelligence, but we can search for evidence of extraterrestrial technology. Such technology would presumably be created by an intelligent civilization. Although NASA funding for SETI expired in 1993, SETI science is far from dead – the search goes on in diverse projects that explore the question of how we might detect signs of extraterrestrial technology using different methods and assumptions about hypothetical advanced civilizations. Radio SETI was popularized in Carl Sagan’s science fiction novel Contact, which was made into a movie starring Jodie Foster as Ellie Arroway, a fictional scientist bearing a more than passing similarity to the very real Jill Tarter. (Sadly, the movie premiered in 1997 shortly after Sagan’s death in 1996.) This month, I will focus on another type of SETI project, whose concept also has its origins over 50 years ago… In a paper published in 1960 entitled Search for Artificial Stellar Sources of Infrared Radiation1, the remarkable physicist, Freeman Dyson, suggested that a very advanced civilization might construct a system of orbiting satellites that would completely encompass their star and capture most or all of its energy output.
    [Show full text]
  • (Extra)Terrestrial Intelligence Soviet Radio Astronomers, Scientific Internationalism and Outer Space Imaginary
    Háskóli Íslands Hugvísindasvið Hugmynda- og vísindasaga Communication with (Extra)Terrestrial Intelligence Soviet Radio Astronomers, Scientific Internationalism and Outer Space Imaginary Ritgerð til MA-prófs í History of Ideas and Science Gabriela Radulescu Kt.: 240489-3769 Leiðbeinandi: Prof. Emeritus Einar H. Guðmundsson January 2020 Abstract In the early 1960s, the prospect of contacting extraterrestrial civilizations became a scientific concern for radio astronomers. The Soviet contributions in this field have been largely overlooked by historians so far. More particularly, little attention has been given to the international collaboration in which the Soviet Union was active in the 1960s and up until 1976 - and which came to be known as ‘Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence’ ​ ​ (CETI). This dissertation research investigates this episode of scientific internationalism in the history of the Cold War. The main question it seeks to answer is how were Soviet conceptualizations of extraterrestrial intelligence and of intelligent radio signals entangled with or informed by the ways in which scientists cooperated beyond state borders? In order to probe into this question, I have worked mostly with the following written sources: conference proceedings, scientific articles, as well as (auto)biographical accounts of the era together with some publications from the 1980s and 1990s. The record attests for a bottom-up process in which Soviet scientists were able to initiate surprising discussions considering the historical context of that time. By envisaging a communication with the Extraterrestrial Other, Soviet scientists facilitated a space for the political imagination to unfold. These findings reveal how the first real international scientific attempt to imagine the possibility of interacting with non-human intelligence beyond the limits of the Earth was articulated in the context of modern empirical science (radio astronomy).
    [Show full text]
  • China's Shiyan Weixing Satellite Programme, 2014-2017
    SPACE CHRONICLE A BRITISH INTERPLANETARY SOCIETY PUBLICATION Vol. 71 No.1 2018 MONUMENTAL STATUES TO LOCAL LIVING COSMONAUTS CHINA’S SHIYAN WEIXING SPEKTR AND RUSSIAN SPACE SCIENCE SATELLITE PROGRAMME FIRST PICTURES OF EARTH FROM A SOVIET SPACECRAFT REPORTING THE RIGHT STUFF? Press in Moscow During the Space Race SINO-RUSSIAN ISSUE ISBN 978-0-9567382-2-6 JANUARY 20181 Submitting papers to From the editor SPACE CHRONICLE DURING THE WEEKEND of June 3rd and 4th 2017, the 37th annual Sino- Chinese Technical Forum was held at the Society’s Headquarters in London. Space Chronicle welcomes the submission Since 1980 this gathering has grown to be one of the most popular events in the for publication of technical articles of general BIS calendar and this year was no exception. The 2017 programme included no interest, historical contributions and reviews less than 17 papers covering a wide variety of topics, including the first Rex Hall in space science and technology, astronautics Memorial Lecture given by SpaceFlight Editor David Baker and the inaugural Oleg and related fields. Sokolov Memorial Paper presented by cosmonaut Anatoli Artsebarsky. GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS Following each year’s Forum, a number of papers are selected for inclusion in a special edition of Space Chronicle. In this issue, four such papers are presented ■ As concise as the content allows – together with an associated paper that was not part the original agenda. typically 5,000 to 6,000 words. Shorter papers will also be considered. Longer The first paper, Spektr and Russian Space Science by Brian Harvey, describes the papers will only be considered in Spektr R Radio Astron radio observatory – Russia’s flagship space science project.
    [Show full text]