im _know_, whatever his
formal beliefs or whatever his unconscious philosophy, that he _must_
progress. Progress is the core of his destiny.

This is a concept which, in connection with space exploration, has been
recognized for many years. One of the earliest and most perceptive of
the space "buffs" stated it before the British Interplanetary Society in
1946 in these words: "* * * our civilization is no more than the sum of
all the dreams that earlier ages have brought to fulfillment. And so it
must always be, for if men cease to dream, if they turn their backs upon
the wonder of the universe, the story of our race will be coming to an
end".[6]

[Illustration: FIGURE 2.--In the years immediately ahead, the
orbiting observatory or the manned satellite will uncover crucial
information about the nature of the universe.]

STEERING A MIDDLE ROAD

In any endeavor which is as futuristic as space exploration it is not
difficult to become lost in the land of the starry-eyed prognosticators.
Conversely, it is also easy to find oneself lining up with the debunkers
and the champions of the status quo, for their arguments and views give
the impression of being hard-headed, sensible.

If one must err in either direction, however, it is probably safer,
where space is concerned, to err in the direction of the enthusiasts.
This is because (and subsequent parts of this report will show it) the
Nation cannot afford not to be in the vanguard of the space explorers.

Events today move with facility and lightning rapidity. Today, more than
ever, time is on the side of the expeditious. We can no longer take the
risk of giving much support to the scoffers--to that breed of
unimaginative souls who thought Robert Fulton was a fool for harnessing
a paddlewheel to a boiler, who thought Henry Ford was a fool for putting
an internal combustion engine on wheels, who thought Samuel Langley was
a fool for designing a contraption to fly through the air.

There are always those who will say it cannot be done. Even in this era
of sophisticated flight there have been those who said the sound barrier
would never be broken. It was. Others said later that space vehicles
would never get through the heat barrier. They have. Now, some say men
will never overcome the radiation barrier in space. But we can be sure
they will.

It is undoubtedly wise for the layman, in terms of the benefits he can
expect from the space program in the foreseeable future,