Contact across the Solar System

Earth Spacecraft Head Outward

On 4 October 1957, the Russians launched Sputnik 1 ("Satellite 1") into low Earth orbit. It was a simple satellite, with only a battery-powered radio transmitter that made a beep-beep-beep sort of signal, but it was enough. A tiny step into outer space by the Earthers, but a successful step nevertheless.

Reznan and Kurati were on duty in the Aurora when they got the news.

Kurati said "Look at this. The Earthers just sent something into orbit."

Reznan asked "They've gotten that far?"

"Yes, and it's the Russians who did it."

"The Russians? Are you sure that it wasn't the Americans?"

"Yes, it's the Russians. I was surprised at that also. I'll see what the Earthers thought about it."

After doing some looking, she continued "We are not alone. A lot of Earthers were surprised by that also."

"We've seen some rocket launches in the Soviet Union, but that country is awfully hard to crack", he said.

He paused.

"I've done some flights over the Soviet Union, and it looks very backward compared to the Western nations. It's hard to get anyone on the ground in there, so our flights are often the best that we can do."

Kurati added "That and our residents in Western countries. They've been sending us lots of stuff on the Soviet Union."

"What can one learn from that?"

She continued "It can be difficult to learn about the Soviet Union, with all their 'we are building a great and wonderful society' and 'we exceeded our quota of farm vehicles to make' and 'we peace-loving people stand together against our imperialist enemies' and stuff like that."

"So it's a lot of self-congratulation?"

"It sometimes seems like that. You often have to look for what they don't say."

It was not long before the Aurora's crew joined numerous Earther amateur radio operators in picking up Sputnik 1's signal. News spread from the Earth observers to the worlds of the SSC. From the SSC people who were interested in Earthers, it got reactions ranging from "A beeper orbiting their homeworld? Is that all that they can do?" to "It's very tiny, but it's rather obviously a first step." to "So the Earthers are getting ready to conquer the Solar System?"

A month after sending up that beeper, the Russians sent a dog into orbit ("Poor thing. It died there."). Then the Americans sent one of their spacecraft into orbit. Both Earther nations were getting into outer space, sending more and more spacecraft into orbit. Over the years, the Earth acquired an impressive cloud of automated space vehicles orbiting it, and the first two spacefaring nations were eventually joined by several other nations, including the nations in the super-nation of Europe. These satellites did a variety of things for the Earthers. Relaying communications. Surveying their homeworld. Monitoring their homeworld's ever-changing atmosphere. Serving as navigation beacons. Spying on other Earthers. Observing the Universe.

But before most of that happened, the first Earther went into space, Russian "cosmonaut" Yuri Gagarin in 1961, followed by an American "astronaut", Alan Shepard, later that year. George and some fellow contactees had beaten them into outer space, but by then, many people were dismissing their accounts as bizarre fantasies if not outright fakery -- even many UFOlogists.

Unlike Yuri Gagarin, who made one orbit, the first two Americans didn't make it into orbit.

Aboard the Aurora, Kalna noticed that after their second flight, and she told Ilmuth about it.