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IRVING ADLER _ JLLUSTRATIONS BY. RUTH ADLER aS EIGHT PAGES OF PHOTOGRAPHS SIX- PAGE TABLE OF ShITTEITES PLACED IN ORBIT the way up The launching of earth satellites is one of the greatest achievements of human history. It has opened the door on dramatic new vistas of knowledge . . . man now has a possibility of peereine his world far beyond the confines of earth. This fascinating book by 2 noted scientist and writer tells in clear, nontechnical language just what our assault on space has accomplished to date. Irving Adler reports actual results of both Russian and American satellite launchings. He describes findings regarding the shape of the earth, density of electrons, temperature of upper air, noting particularly the Van Allen radiation belts— two rings of charged particles encircling the earth, one of which was predicted by the Norwegian physi- cist Carl Stormer some fifty years ago. The text is illustrated with Ruth Adler’s informa- tive drawings. The author also includes eight ages of photographs, and a valuable table show- ing the date of launching, weight, distance from earth, and length of life of the first fifty satellites that America and Russia have placed in orbit. Other SIGNET SCIENCE LIBRARY Books Tue Sun Anv Its Famity by Irving Adler A popular book on astronomy which traces the scientific discoveries about the solar system from earliest times to the present. (# P2037—60¢) TuHinkinc Macuines by Irving Adler The uses of logic and algebra in connection with to- day’s electric computers, and how these computers work, (# P2065—60¢) ReELativiry FoR THE LAYMAN by James A. Coleman A concise history and account of the theory of rela- tivity, written with a minimum of technical language and profusely illustrated. (# P2049—60¢) THe Wetsprines or Lire by Isaac Asimov The chemistry of the living cell and its relation to evo- lution, heredity, growth and development. (# P2066—60¢) TO OUR READERS: We welcome your request for our free catalog of Stcnet and Mentor books. If your dealer -does not have the books you want, you may order them by mail, enclosing the list price plus 5¢ a copy to cover mailing. The New American Library of World Literature, tare Box 2310, Grand Central Station, New York Tey NER §, -e s ca£eh9 : “Ait n | Seeing 4 The Earth ‘ From Space 7 Ts - What the Man-Made Moons Tell Us : By Irving Adler — ss Illustrated by Ruth Adlet i fi Based in parton MAN-MADE MOONS, — v2 Irving Adler | Regios! A SIGNET SCIENCE B ‘ PUBLISHED BY THE 3 NEW AMERICAN Ip 7, ae Sse A aN NF © 1957, 1959, 1961 By IRVING AND RUTH ADLER All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission. For information address The John Day Company, Inc., 62 West 45th Street, New York 36, New York. Published as a SIGNET SCIENCE BOOK By Arrangement with The John Day Company, Inc. Fmsr PrintTinG, JANuARY, 1962 Material on the findings made by earth satellites constitutes approximately two-fifths of the text and illustrations of this book. The remainder is background material from the author’s earlier book, Man-Made Moons. SIGNET TRADEMARE REG. U.S. PAT. OFF. AND FOREIGN OOUNTRIES REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MAROA BHGISTRADA HECHO EN OHICAGO, U.S.A. SIGNET SCIENCE BOOKS are published by The New American Library of World Literature, Inc. 501 Madison Avenue, New York 22, New York PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Contents . The Earth Satellite 7 . The Shape of the Earth 47 iil. The Earth’s Blanket of Air 67 tv. Light We Never See 7 . The Earth as Seen from Space 89 vi. Electricity in the Air 97 Vit. The Earth’s Magnetism 109 Vill. Next Steps in Space 123 First Satellites Successfully Placed in Orbit 137 Index 144 . % See . mF G7S t Se CHAPTER I The Earth Satellite af Yew Moons and New Planets Every month we say there is a new moon in the sky, al- though it really isn’t a new moon at all. It is only the old moon hiding its face again in its own shadow. But now there are moons in the sky that are really new. They are ‘man-made moons, designed by scientists, built in labora- tories, and hurled into space from the ground. They are tiny compared to the old moon, and much closer to the earth. But, like the old moon, each is a satellite of _ ‘the earth, revolving around the earth in an orbit of its | own. ; There are also new planets in the sky. They were unched from the earth in the direction of the moon, but fe y sped past the moon and began to circle around the gunT. he first man-made moon was launched by scientists of the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957. On that day Rtuhses iwahno le wowrodr ldf orb esgaatnel litues.i ngO nae nemwo ntwho rdl,a tesr putan iks,e cotnhde _sputnik was in the sky carrying the first space traveler, a all dog called Laika. In 1958, six more earth satellites successfully placed into orbit. Five of them were © O space by the United States, and one by the So- — sph ih 7 ps ; af cas lnm» yw ay = ~~»S i fee spre BD) f' y 8 SEEING THE EARTH FROM SPACE viet Union. In February and April, 1959, the United States launched two more earth satellites, and there will be many more following them into the sky. At the time that .this is being written, only six of the first ten man-made moons are still revolving around the earth. The other four have already fallen back to the earth, burning up as they fell. The new planets are accidental results of attempts to fire rockets to the moon. A Soviet moon rocket, fired on January 2, 1959, took about two days to travel the 240,000-mile distance to the moon. But it didn’t get close enough to the moon to hit it or begin circling around it. It passed the moon at a distance of about 5,000 miles, and went on into an orbit around the sun. An American moon rocket, fired on March 3, 1959, came to within 37,000 miles from the moon, and then, like the Soviet rocket, sped on into an orbit around the sun. First Steps into Space The launchings of the earth satellites and moon rockets are important as man’s first steps into outer space. For hundreds of years men have dreamed of being able to travel away from the earth. Gifted writers like Edgar Allan Poe, Jules Verne, and H. G. Wells have told excit- ing stories about spaceships that carried men to the moon. Magazine stories, radio programs, and motion pictures have described voyages to Venus and Mars. But all these journeys through space have existed only in the imaginations of their authors, While man’s mind has reached out to the stars, his body has been a prisoner on the earth. The force of gravity has been like an invisible chain binding him to the earth’s surface. But when the first earth satellite rose out of the earth’s atmosphere to circle the earth hundreds of miles above the ground, it proved that this chain had been broken. The first man- made moon, was only a small sphere carrying ™ scientific instruments. But its successful journey paved the way for passenger ships that will some day follow it into space.