Space Age (1957–1980s): A Unique Opportunity for Expansion

Abstract

This second chapter follows the enormous expansion of the space sciences around the world after the launch of Sputnik, as well as the uniquely constrained West German response; and it focuses on how the Max Planck Society maneuvered itself into a role of predominance in the space sciences, under these circumstances. Thanks to its strong scientific traditions and political backers, the Max Planck Society was singularly well placed to take advantage of the rising interest in the study and conquest of outer space: while guaranteeing a concerted emphasis on 'fundamental research' and international collaboration, it mobilized existing projects in plasma physics, cosmochemistry, and balloon-based cosmic rays, and joined in diverse space activities with the United States and various European countries. This entry into the space age paved the way to the Society's subsequent expansion into astronomy (the subject of the next chapter), and also allowed the scientific traditions of the early postwar era to diversify: dependency on 'nuclear' sociopolitical interests and funding was now succeeded by a focus on astrophysical subjects proper. As we will see in subsequent chapters, this reorientation ultimately became one of the vehicles propelling these longstanding traditions towards the most effervescent topics of 21st-century astrophysics. 'Sputnik Shocks'Within only a few months of the launch of the Soviet satellite, the status of disciplines such as astronomy and astrophysics changed dramatically, as they now became integrated into the Cold War apparatus, just as experimental physics had been in 1945. Key players in this radical shift were those scientists around the world who had preexisting strengths and interests in the cosmic sciences, but had formulated their research in terms of 'nuclear' topics during the postwar years. Space exploration initiatives in the United States, Soviet Union, France, Britain, and other European countries would now become the model for the German MPI scientists described in the previous chapter, and, eventually, their collaboration counterparts, too. We describe this transition, from the predominantly 'nuclear' period up to 1957 to the nascent space age.