Space. Global and Cultural Impact

The development of space technology has had an undeniable impact on our understanding and appreciation of the earth, largely because it allowed us to take a global view. For example, the first pictures showing earth as a planet in space were taken from spacecraft in lunar orbit, the most famous being the ‘‘earthrise’’ sequence from Apollo-8 (see Figure 16). It is often suggested that these images provided the inspiration for the green movement and kick-started a new phase of global awareness; certainly they have been widely used in the print media ever since.

Figure 16. ‘‘Earthrise’’ from lunar orbit, as photographed in December 1968 during the Apollo-8 mission. This was the first time anyone from earth had seen their home planet from the moon

The communications satellite has, arguably, done as much as any other technology to make the ‘‘global village’’ a reality. Thanks to the satellite, it is now possible to communicate from any position on the earth’s surface to any other; uplink news reports from anywhere on earth using equipment the size of a briefcase; and ascertain one’s location anywhere on earth using the global position system (GPS). The satellite has also provided a tool for democracy, again because of its global coverage and its insensitivity to political boundaries. It is for this reason that, as the twentieth century closed, individual satellite receiving antennas remained illegal in China.

Apart from its economic, social, and political influences, space technology has had a widespread impact on our increasingly global culture. The evidence that space is part of our culture is there for all to see—in books, newspapers, films, and on television. Incredible though it may seem, after more than 40 years of the space age, space technology is still used in advertising to suggest technical advancement and high reliability, while children’s toys still reflect a fascination with space, especially at primary level, where space is reckoned to be second only to dinosaurs in the interest ratings.

On the broadest level, space technology has enhanced our understanding of the ‘‘cosmos’’ and mankind’s place in it, an understanding that has both intellectual and religious ramifications. We have absolute proof that the earth is neither flat nor the center of creation, and we know far more about the objects, processes, and scale of the universe than we would without space-based astronomy. From a psychological standpoint, we have proved that mankind is not necessarily limited to living on a single planet, and the development of space technology has shown that ‘‘the final frontier’’ is simply another boundary to cross.

Perhaps the ultimate space development is the one that will enable tourists, as opposed to career astronauts and cosmonauts, to cross that boundary. The first step towards this goal was made in 2001, when Dennis Tito paid the Russian authorities a reported US$20 million for a one- week visit to the International Space Station.

As with any technology, space technology can be applied in many ways. It is possible that its future development will allow mankind to conduct wars in space and ultimately destroy the earth. It is equally possible that space technology may one day save mankind from a devastating asteroid impact, a concept that has evoked serious consideration from both film makers and government officials (Figure 17). Certainly, by the time the sun reaches its red giant phase and expands to encompass the earth, only space technology will have offered salvation.

Figure 17. The impact of comet Shoemaker-Levy on Jupiter in 1994, imaged by the Hubble space telescope, showed that earth too is at risk; the circular marking on Jupiter’s clouds is approximately the same size as the earth. Space technology is the only technology that offers options to either destroy or deflect such an object

In the nearer term, and in an historical context, it is relevant to consider what the twentieth century will be remembered for in, say, another thousand years. Unless the planet has suffered another ‘‘dark age’’ and all records have been lost, it will be remembered as the century in which mankind harnessed the techniques of space technology and learned to live and work in space. As Konstantin Tsiolkovsky once said, ‘‘earth is the cradle of mankind, but one cannot remain in the cradle forever.’’