Dec 29 1962
From The Space Library
Planet Venus may rotate clockwise on its axis at a rate of about once in 250 earth days, Richard H. Goldstein of NASA Goldstone Tracking Station announced. Conclusions were based on MARINER II "fly-by" of planet Venus Dec. 14 and of radar experiments conducted by Goldstein at NASA Goldstone Oct. 1–Dee. 17.
NASA announced 4,000-lb. micrometeorite satellite would be launched with Saturn test vehicles SA-8 and SA-9. Satellite, to unfold in space exposing surface area of 2,000 sq. ft., would be "bonus" experiment with chief missions of flight to be launch vehicle development test and atmospheric re-entry test of Apollo boilerplate spacecraft.
Dr. Freeman H. Quimby. Chief of Exobiology Programs in NASA Office of Space Sciences, announced U.S. plans to land life-detecting devices on Mars in 1966. "Perhaps Mars is sterile. But we're working on the postulate there may be some forms of life," Dr. Quimby told the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Philadelphia.
Addressing American Association for the Advancement of Science, Dr. Loren K. Eiseley, anthropology prof. at Univ. of Pennsylvania, said that space defense efforts are "consuming an enormous amount of our wealth and energy. . . . Let a few generations go by, and so much of society's wealth and employment will be wrapped up] in this sort of thing that you will get—as we are beginning to get now a vested interest in war. . . . [The space defense effort is] a kind of gigantic tumor. When these emerge, you not alone run the danger of weakening society, but also encounter the fact that these tumors grow and become monstrous; to reduce them to normal size becomes difficult if not impossible. . . ." Dr. Eiseley predicted the massive emphasis on space and armaments might lead to downfall of modern civilization; he compared the preoccupation with space and armaments to Imperial Rome's colonialism, Ancient Egypt's tomb and pyramid building, and India's elaborate caste system which contributed to downfall of those ancient civilizations.
Soviet news agency Novosti reported first Soviet radioastronomy experiments with planet Venus Nov. 19 and 24. Scientists sent words "peace," "Lenin," and "U.S.S.R." to Venus in radio code and they returned to earth about 4.5 min. later.
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