It has been 54 years since humanity first landed on the moon in 1969, and now a new space era has arrived. The launch entities have expanded from governments to private companies, and spacecraft that were once single-use are now being designed for multiple uses. Space has become closer and interest has increased accordingly. This book explains space science at a level easy for children to understand. The protagonist, tasked with solving space debris, leaves Earth, meets animal astronauts, and faces attacks from satellites. Through this, it introduces the results of space science discoveries such as satellites launched by humanity, planets in the solar system, black holes, comets, and solar flares in an easy-to-understand way.
![[One Sip of a Book] Space Debris Solution... What Hyeonsu Saw After Leaving Earth](https://cphoto.asiae.co.kr/listimglink/1/2023101914105821536_1697692257.jpg)
Humans have dreamed of going to space since ancient times. But at first, people couldn’t go themselves. So, Soviet scientists gathered various animals to test which animals could adapt well to space. A stray dog named ‘Laika’ happened to participate in this experiment and turned out to be very smart. She was selected as the final candidate and became the world’s first space traveler! After that, Laika became a popular star, and stamps and chocolates featuring her image were made. We can say that astronauts today can fly safely thanks to Laika. - p.42~43
The Greek mathematician Pythagoras claimed that ‘the Earth is shaped like a big sphere’ because he believed that a round sphere was the most perfect shape of all. Later, Greek philosopher Aristotle and astronomer Eratosthenes scientifically proved that the Earth is round. Today, we can see the round shape of the Earth through countless satellite photos. - p.62~63
Two-thirds of the Earth is covered by oceans, and the rest is land. Because there is so much water, the Earth looks blue. Another reason is that when sunlight hits the substances that make up the Earth's atmosphere, it scatters into various colors. Among these, blue light scatters much more, making the Earth appear blue.
Yuri Gagarin, the first person to travel to space, also said while looking at Earth from space, “The Earth was blue.” - p.63
The space station can be thought of as a large house made by connecting small houses. Depending on the need, parts of the station can be detached and reattached to conduct various experiments. Inside the space station, there are restrooms and laboratories. Solar panels are attached to both edges of the station, converting sunlight into electricity to power the station. Outside, robotic arms and airlocks are installed to assist with tasks, allowing the space station to carry out various missions. - p.79~80
Have you ever wondered, “Are humans the only life forms in the vast universe?” or “Could there be other life forms living in distant space?” Scientists are constantly searching for evidence of life in space based on such imaginations. A representative alien search project is the ‘SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Project,’ which analyzes radio waves coming from space to detect artificial signals. If these efforts continue, a day may come soon when we, like Hyunsoo, can communicate with aliens. - p.96
There are hundreds of billions of stars grouped together in space, and this group is called a ‘galaxy.’ Among them, the group of stars that includes the Sun and Earth is called ‘Our Galaxy.’ Inside our galaxy, there are eight planets orbiting the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. These planets together are called the solar system. They are the family of eight planets influenced by the Sun’s power.
--- p.111
The Earth is a planet, and the Sun is a star. A star is a celestial body that emits its own light, while a planet cannot emit its own light. So, the Sun, which shines by itself, is a star, and the Earth, which cannot shine by itself, is a planet. A celestial body that orbits a planet is called a satellite. The most representative satellite is the Moon, which orbits the Earth. - p.112
The highest temperature on Venus is close to 500 degrees Celsius. The cause is carbon dioxide. About 96.5% of Venus’s atmosphere is carbon dioxide, which traps solar heat. This property also causes ‘global warming’ on Earth. Venus is close to the Sun, so it receives a lot of solar heat, and because it has a lot of carbon dioxide trapping that heat, its temperature is inevitably high. - p.122~123
Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system. It is about 1/18 the size of Earth. Although small, it is the closest planet to the Sun, making it extremely hot, and solar winds blow so strongly that Mercury has no atmosphere. It’s a small planet but not one to be underestimated. - p.130
When we say a year is 365 days, it means the time Earth takes to orbit the Sun once. A day of 24 hours is the time Earth takes to rotate once on its axis. If Earth took 100 days to orbit the Sun, then one year on Earth would be 100 days. What about Mercury? Mercury takes 88 Earth days to orbit the Sun once, so one year on Mercury is 88 Earth days. Mercury takes about 59 Earth days to rotate once on its axis, so one day on Mercury is 59 Earth days. - p.131
The Sun has been burning at unimaginably high temperatures for 4.6 billion years. The surface temperature of the Sun is about 5,800 degrees Celsius, hot enough to melt metal instantly. The Sun sends this intense heat and light to Earth, enabling various life forms to survive. It is a precious existence. - p.138
Korea is also participating in the Artemis program to send humans to the Moon. For this mission, on August 5, 2022, Korea launched its first lunar orbiter, ‘Danuri.’ In December 2022, Danuri successfully entered lunar orbit and is mapping the Moon’s terrain, magnetic field, and resources, as well as scouting potential landing sites. - p.151
The highest mountain on Earth is Mount Everest, standing at 8,848 meters. Mars has Olympus Mons, which is three times higher than Mount Everest. It is the largest volcano in the solar system. What if this huge mountain erupts? But don’t worry! It is a dormant volcano that is no longer active. - p.160
Jupiter is 11 times larger than Earth. Its volume is 1,300 times greater, and its mass is 318 times that of Earth. Jupiter is so big that ancient people called it ‘Jupiter,’ another name for Zeus, the king of gods in Roman mythology. If Jupiter emitted light like the Sun and had a bit more mass, it might have surpassed the Sun and become the king of the solar system. What a pity! - p.169
Saturn, like Jupiter, is filled with gas. It is far from the Sun, so it is very cold, with temperatures as low as minus 176 degrees Celsius. Moreover, Saturn has storms five times faster than Jupiter’s whirlpools, making it impossible for humans to live there. - p.170~171
Italian astronomer Galileo first discovered Saturn’s rings in 1610. At that time, the telescope’s resolution was not high, so people thought the rings were ‘Saturn’s ears.’ Later, in 1659, Dutch astronomer Huygens revealed that ‘Saturn’s ears’ were thin, flat rings. In fact, Saturn has thousands of beautiful rings made up of large and small ice particles. - p.171
Before Uranus was discovered, people thought the solar system had six planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. But in 1781, astronomer William Herschel discovered Uranus using a telescope he made. Uranus became the first planet discovered with a telescope. Why wasn’t it discovered earlier? Because it was too far, too dim, and moved slowly, making it hard to spot with the naked eye. The discovery of Uranus dramatically expanded the known boundaries of the solar system. - p.178~179
The distance from Earth to Uranus is about 2.9 billion km, roughly 19 times farther than the distance from Earth to the Sun. Voyager 2 flew at a speed exceeding 670,000 km/h for 10 years to reach near Uranus in 1977, showing how vast the distance is. - p.179
Pluto used to be the farthest planet in the solar system. However, because Pluto is smaller than other planets and has a different orbit around the Sun, it was removed from the list of planets in 2006. As a result, Neptune became the farthest planet, and the solar system now has eight planets. Remember the first letters of the planets’ names in Korean: Su-Geum-Ji-Hwa-Mok-To-Cheon-Hae (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune). - p.192
Neptune has a beautiful blue color and is nicknamed the ‘Blue Pearl.’ But don’t be fooled by its appearance! It is very far from the Sun and extremely cold, with an average temperature of minus 214 degrees Celsius, where endless ice stretches out. - p.193
Space Debris Fell into Our Home | Written by An Bu-yeon & Park Si-su | Illustrated by Shin Ji-hye | UI Books | 208 pages | 14,000 KRW
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
