Why space might become unnecessary
October 4, 2017 marks exactly 60 years since the launch of the first artificial Earth satellite. It was simply called "Sputnik-1" (or, quite officially, "The Simplest Sputnik-1"). This proper name, which quickly became a household name, had to be learned by the whole world. For almost 60 years of the space age, we have become accustomed to space, and it has become an extension of our common home. Today, there are thousands of spacecraft in orbit: communication satellites, Earth remote sensing, meteorological, reconnaissance, space observatories and many others. "The Simplest Sputnik-1" was launched on October 4, 1957. The space industry grew rapidly during the Cold War. As a result of the confrontation "on all fronts", the USSR and the United States began to play leading roles in world cosmonautics: the United States is still leading in almost all directions, except for manned flights. Russia has no equals here yet, and most likely will not be i