Man's Conquest Of Space

by William Roy Shelton

Challenging the vast ocean of space, man confronts the most awesome of all frontiers. Since the start of the Space Age, his courage and technology have carried him away from his home planet to supreme adventure

Man's Conquest of Space encompasses the whole thrilling pageant: from the first man to orbit Earth to the epic journeys to the moon; from the first simple satellites, beeping their messages home, to the complex robots of today, speeding through the reaches of interplanetary space.

The far-sighted pioneers who have contributed to the Space Age are here--men like Galileo and Copernicus, Goddard and Von Braun, men whose probing minds have helped take us to new worlds beyond earth.

It is an adventure story, an account of astronauts and cosmonauts, of the dangers most of them survived and the tragedies some did not. But it is also a story of the great and complex marshaling of effort that made their flights possible--the energy and dedication of thousands of men and women.

Genres: Science, Space, Nonfiction, History, Collections

199 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

About the author

William Shelton was WWII hero and covered at least forty eight major United States rocket launches as Miami Bureau Chief for Time Inc. and space affairs correspondent for both Time and Life magazines. After that, he became a free –lance writer, living in Seabrook, Texas. The movie “Stowaway to the Moon” (1975) was based on the novel of the same name written by Shelton.

Reviews

[Bob]

The author was an expert journalist who followed closely, America's space program, and this book underwritten by the National Geographic Society paints a clear and informative picture of the space program from the mid-fifties to the mid-seventies. Documented with numerous NASA and NGS color photos, Shelton's presentation and factual story, this is an excellent and informative introduction to the pioneering space days without being overly encumbered with trivia. Recommended for anyone interested in the early days of space exploration, especially America's voyages to the Moon.