Word: braune
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...brightly glowing red (1,300° F.), but the crew, protected by insulation and liquid-cooled windows, do not feel the heat. The ship glides on, part meteor, part airplane. Gradually its energy is dissipated; it spirals down, slows to subsonic speed and lands at its base, says Von Braun, at an easy 65 m.p.h. The crewmen step out for a Coke at the space pilots' club while their ship cools off and is made ready for another shuttle to the orbit...
According to Von Braun's calculations, it will take about a dozen such shuttles to ferry the knocked-down parts of the space station into its orbit, where men clad in space suits will assemble it. Their task will be lightened somewhat by the absence of gravity, but they will have to be pushed to & from their work stations by small rockets bearing against their navels...
Such a station, says Von Braun, could dominate the world. Every two hours it would circle the earth, and as the earth turns below it, every part of its surface would come into view. A 100-inch telescope parked in space and manipulated by remote controls could distinguish objects on the earth only 16 inches apart. This, he believes, would permit U.S. observers to report, say, every change of the Kremlin guard. Large objects, such as Russian air bases, would show up plain...
...station would also be useful, Von Braun says, for launching atom-armed guided missiles. They would spiral downward red hot, and their descent would be timed to keep them in view of the space station. Their targets on earth would be visible too. As the missile approaches its target, its course could be corrected by radio from the station, making a square hit inevitable. Once a supply of such missiles had been stockpiled in the orbit, potential aggressors below would be forced to keep the global peace...
...Braun has pushed his startling proposal both publicly and privately before many different audiences. He is quite serious. A more elaborate version of his plan, with full secret details, is believed to be circulating among Washington military bigwigs. There are also rival satellite plans...