Discovery - The Will to Explore and Space Shuttle Discovery

The Moon

We look up into the night sky, especially in some spot far away from city lights, and see the moon and stars. The ancients found faces in the moon and named loose collections of stars for things they could identify with, and used them as symbolic tokens and for navigation. Thus we have constellations named “Capricorn” and “Virgo” and archers and bears gracing the night sky. For many the stars assemble themselves in easily fed advice, stating things such as “feed your mind today“ or “today is a good time to chill out”. For others, the moon and stars represent a dream of future exploration, an accumulation of human knowledge, and mapping out human destiny.

There are some that look at the cost of space exploration and turn aside, thinking it too expensive, not worthy of pursuit. To these individuals, all they see is the need that currently exists on earth, and thus the opportunity cost of space exploration is expressed in terms of what could otherwise be done with the money spent on space exploration. Understanding their concern is easy, considering the extent of earth’s problems, however such individuals don’t appreciate the considerable societal benefits that space exploration confers.

Many technological advances that have occurred in the framework of the space program went on to fuel major technological achievements in the public and private sectors These advances have brought forth new industries, and have fueled overall job creation via the multiplier effect in the general economy, generating a significant economic gain and better standard of living.

NASA’s Space Shuttle Discovery is currently flying on it’s last mission. Discovery has completed more than 30 successful missions since its first flight on August 30, 1984. It has performed both assembly missions for the International Space Station (ISS) and research missions.

Discovery takes its name from a long line of historical vessels that have ventured forth to explore and discover, including Henry Hudson’s Discovery, used to explore Hudson Bay in 1610-11 in an attempt to find the Northwest Passage. The Space Shuttle Discovery has been emblematic of the quest to explore and discover new territories and new meanings. NASA Television can be viewed to get an idea of activity on the Space Shuttle.

Discovery - Colonel (Dr.) John Paul Stapp

Colonel (Dr.) John Paul Stapp

1950's -- Colonel (Dr.) John Paul Stapp at The New Mexico Museum of Space History. He was a frequent and most welcomed visitor to the Center. Stapp was not only the "fastest human on earth;" he was the quickest to stop. In 1954, America's original Rocketman attained a then-world record land speed of 632 mph, going from a standstill to a speed faster than a .45 bullet in five seconds on an especially-designed rocket sled, and then screeched to a dead stop in 1.4 seconds, sustaining more than 40g's of thrust, all in the interest of safety. Image and Caption Source: U.S. Air Force www.af.mil

Colonel John Paul Stapp’s work (discussed in the last post) is yet another example of discovery which can both mitigate a risk and intuit a reward (Discovery - Part 4 post). His work with rocket sleds was able to determine human physiological limits in sustaining g-forces. This work, conducted at Edwards Air Force Base and later at Holloman Air Force Base used a rocket sled that accelerated to great speeds and was then decelerated using a water brake. While testing on the rocket sled, Colonel Stapp underwent g-forces of greater than 40 g’s.

Source: Wikipedia artice on Colonel Stapp (via U.S. Air Force www.af.mil)

Colonel Stapp’s work subjected him to a multitude of stresses and injuries as a test subject, including retinal damage, fractures and broken limbs and ribs.

Colonel Stapp’s work was instrumental in facilitating use of high speed aircraft and ventures into outer space. It was used to determine that pilots could operate aircraft under high performance conditions and eject at high speeds and survive. Thus this work was ground-breaking in forging the path of future discoveries, both directly, and indirectly as space and aeronautical efforts have fed technological advances in many areas.

Colonel Stapp’s work in deceleration was instrumental in mitigating risk on terra firma, bringing about seat belts which we (we hope) use every day in our motor vehicle trips. The Air Force suffered losses from auto accidents. Colonel Stapp was able to use his work on deceleration to argue for safety restraints for the motor vehicles. His work in this area was done at Holloman Air Force Base, using crash test dummies. This application was an exercise in creativity, taking one application and using it in another area to additional benefit.

Colonel Stapp’s research in auto safety was continued in the context of the Stapp Car Crash Conference which provided a broader context in which to support continued research into auto safety.

Colonel Stapp’s work in the military carries on to this day with Flight Surgeons who are always seeking to use their expertise to extend the boundaries of knowledge and performance for our nation’s pilots as they fly more and more powerful, higher performance aircraft and play deeper forays into Outer Space.

Colonel Stapp and I share a common ancestor going way back to around 1700, which is one element adding to my interest in his work. Genealogy is another interesting topic which I hope to include as a blog topic sometime down the road.

Exploration - New Year's Eve Posting

Riser-Larsen Ice Shelf, Antarctica

The concept of exploration is a compelling one. As children we explore our neighborhood to find new treasures. As adults we explore new destinations and experiences. Venturing into the unknown gives us a sense of both eager anticipation and risk as we explore harsh environments such as Antarctica. The act of surmounting those risks fulfills us and we return home to tell our story, ready to take on new challenges.

As we enter into the New Year 2010 we can reflect upon the exploration of Space, the contributions of those working in Space programs, and the astronauts who work there.

NASA’s website discusses exploration initiatives, and includes discussion on history, motivation for space travel and other areas.

The Museum of Flight in Seattle has an excellent display of Space-related exhibits that educate and inspire.

Humanity has an opportunity to reach for the stars, to make dreams and imagination come alive.

The stars have long been a source of dreams and visions, expressed in both non-fiction and fiction form. The Arthur C. Clarke novel “2010: Odyssey Two” which was also made into a movie, expresses a shared human sentiment for space exploration and the conquering of the unknown.