Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration
by Roger Launius
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Pub. Ed. $34.99
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Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration
The desire to explore the Universe is one of the hallmarks of our species. Packed with hundreds of full-color photographs, drawings, and maps, the Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration chronicles this exciting saga from earliest times to the present.
Roger Launius and Andrew Johnston begin with a look at astronomical observatories in antiquity, from Stonehenge to the Pyramid of the Sun, before jumping forward to the birth of rocketry. Hermann Oberth, Robert Goddard and Wernher von Braun are among the luminaries whose achievements we review. From there, we trace the rise of popular interest in exploration of the Moon and Mars, and review the launch of Sputnik I on October 4, 1957—the date that marks the dawn of the Space Age.
Next, the authors go on to review a dizzying variety of technological landmarks that have enabled us to explore space, ranging from booster rockets like the Ariane 1 and Saturn V to the construction of spaceports such as Cape Canaveral. Interested in the challenges that await a vessel being sent into Earth orbit? Then you’re in luck—an entire chapter is devoted to what Yuri Gagarin, the first human in space, had to face, as well as John Glenn and those who followed them.
Getting into Earth orbit is one thing; traveling to the Moon and other worlds is something else entirely. In turn, the book offers detailed looks at the various unmanned and manned lunar missions, from Luna 2 and Ranger 4, that marked the U.S.-Soviet “space race” through the extraordinary Apollo program of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The final two sections of the book chronicle the ongoing exploration of the inner and outer solar system via a series of intrepid robot probes, from Pioneer to Voyager to Cassini. The book sports an array of special features, including newly commissioned, never-before-seen maps of key launch sites and itineraries of spacecraft on other worlds.
The Smithsonian Atlas of Space Exploration is a stirring and informative testament to our ongoing conquest of the cosmos.
Hardcover : 240 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins ( June 01, 2009 )
Item #: 12-750677
ISBN: 9780061565267
Product Dimensions: 9.0 x 12.0 inches
Product Weight: 55.0 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
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