Since the dawn of time, humankind has looked up at the stars and wondered about their origins. With the development of rockets and other technologies in the 20th century, it became possible to send machines, then animals, and finally humans above Earth’s atmosphere into space. This opened up a whole new frontier and captured the imaginations of people in all walks of life.
For many years national governments were the only ones with enough money to afford to send things into space, so their space programs served a wide range of interests. They helped expand knowledge, promoted prestige and power, enhanced military capability, and fostered commercial advantage.
As a result of the manned space program, scientists have learned a great deal about the planets and other objects in our Solar System. In addition, satellites in orbit help us understand the Earth’s climate, track natural disasters and other events, and provide information on crop yields.
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station have experimented with and refined medical innovations that are transforming healthcare on Earth. This includes everything from life-saving cancer treatments to delicate robotic surgery performed inside an MRI machine.
While there are still many barriers to putting people in space, the costs of launching vehicles into low-Earth orbit are steadily decreasing. Soon the technology will be available to explore the reaches of our Solar System with the kind of relative ease that once required a multibillion-dollar space mission. For example, future missions might use balloon capsules that can reach deeper layers of the Solar System without the need for massive rockets.