> Just a ping from four light years away does not seem worth the effort to me,
That's all Sputnik was, a ping in orbit. But it was worth doing to get something, anything at all, in orbit. Sputnik itself wasn't important, but the knowledge and experience gained was.
You don't not throw a Sputnik up because you know that decades later you'll have the ability to throw up a space station. Sputnik is part of the space station process.
That's all Sputnik was, a ping in orbit. But it was worth doing to get something, anything at all, in orbit. Sputnik itself wasn't important, but the knowledge and experience gained was.
You don't not throw a Sputnik up because you know that decades later you'll have the ability to throw up a space station. Sputnik is part of the space station process.