space research

A rocket explodes soon after launch
Can you remember the high spots in the 'space race'? A recent article with the title Yuri Gagarin: Waste of space? brought back memories and summed it all up very well. The space race, was a rather exclusive affair, dominated by the Russians and the USA, few other countries took part. The Chinese had a satellite that, we were told, weighed one ton. This made us laugh as there is a soup with a similar name, Wun Tun, sold in all Chinese restaurants. Also this satellite had a wooden heat shield, well we all have to start somewhere. But it was the French who, as usual, allowed their Gallic pride to take over. Alas in the search for la gloire their satellites went pop on a regular basis and so became a frequent item on news broadcasts. But then the stupid EU allowed the French to create an EU based Space Agency and so the costs of this vanity project where shared buy the whole of the EU and not just the delusional parts.