Science: Journey into Space

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So the crew must make a "power maneuver." They observe the stars to fix their position; then, by spinning three little flywheels, they point their rockets in the right direction and turn on the power for 15 seconds. If all goes well, the ship will move into a circular orbit, speeding around the earth at 15,840 m.p.h. Unless brought down deliberately, it will circle there forever.

Red-Hot Descent. At this point the crew may shake hands all round, but they still have excitement ahead. They unload the 36 tons of cargo (sections of the satellite station) and park it in space. There's no danger of its falling: it has the same speed as the rocket, and will stay in the orbit indefinitely.

Then the crewmen make another power maneuver. They turn the ship so that its rocket motors are pointing forward. A brief blast from them reduces the ship's speed by 1,070 m.p.h. and puts it into an elliptical course which swings down toward the atmosphere. In its outer fringes, 50 miles up, air resistance heats the rocket's skin and wings to a brightly glowing red (1,300° F.), but the crew, protected by insulation and liquid-cooled windows, do not feel the heat. The ship glides on, part meteor, part airplane. Gradually its energy is dissipated; it spirals down, slows to subsonic speed and lands at its base, says Von Braun, at an easy 65 m.p.h. The crewmen step out for a Coke at the space pilots' club while their ship cools off and is made ready for another shuttle to the orbit.

According to Von Braun's calculations, it will take about a dozen such shuttles to ferry the knocked-down parts of the space station into its orbit, where men clad in space suits will assemble it. Their task will be lightened somewhat by the absence of gravity, but they will have to be pushed to & from their work stations by small rockets bearing against their navels.

Revolving Doughnut. The completed satellite station will be a doughnut-shaped object 250 feet in diameter, made of plastic-impregnated nylon inflated with air. It will revolve slowly, its motion providing a centrifugal substitute for gravity. "Down" will be outward, so the crew will walk with their feet toward the outer wall of the ring.

Such a station, says Von Braun, could dominate the world. Every two hours it would circle the earth, and as the earth turns below it, every part of its surface would come into view. A 100-inch telescope parked in space and manipulated by remote controls could distinguish objects on the earth only 16 inches apart. This, he believes, would permit U.S. observers to report, say, every change of the Kremlin guard. Large objects, such as Russian air bases, would show up plain as day.

The station would also be useful, Von Braun says, for launching atom-armed guided missiles. They would spiral downward red hot, and their descent would be timed to keep them in view of the space station. Their targets on earth would be visible too. As the missile approaches its target, its course could be corrected by radio from the station, making a square hit inevitable. Once a supply of such missiles had been stockpiled in the orbit, potential aggressors below would be forced to keep the global peace.